040. Roommates

040. (29 Jan) Roommates (1995, Peter Yates) 9



Nothing says fun family comedy like a crotchety old man, a cold male lead, and a female lead who dies midway through the film leaving behind two young kids! Peter Falk is unbearable here, not landing a single joke. But there's really no laugh that lands in the film's entire bloated runtime. For instance, when D.B. Sweeney is late for dinner his adolescent son suggests, "Maybe daddy's dead too!" Hilarious. Theoretically, I suppose Falk didn't look as old as he did when they filmed this, resulting in an awful Oscar nomination.

GAME CHANGE

GAME CHANGE
Written by Danny Strong
Directed by Jay Roach
Starring Julianne Moore, Woody Harrelson and Ed Harris

Although I will never fully understand it, I was just another Canadian glued to my television set nightly leading up to the 2008 American presidential election. On the one hand, I was consumed by the idea of the change that then senator, Barack Obama, could bring to a country that so badly needed it, to say nothing of the historical possibility of an African-American president. But I will not deny that I was also deeply fascinated, and often just as disturbed, by the circus that was the John McCain campaign. GAME CHANGE, from the team who previously went behind the political curtain with RECOUNT to explore the 2000 election recounts in Florida, is not going to blow anyone’s mind with revelations about that campaign but it does make the whole insanity seem much more human than it came across.

Unlike the novel of the same name that GAME CHANGE is based on, by authors John Heileman and Mark Halperin, this HBO feature does not focus on the Democratic and Republican primaries. Instead, writer, Danny Strong, and director Jay Roach, introduce the film at a pivotal point in the McCain campaign and take it from there. Senator McCain, played by a reserved Ed Harris, is trailing Obama (not dramatized in the film) by far too many points to win the election and refuses to play dirty politics. So in order to win, his campaign manager (Woody Harrelson) suggests that they need a real game changer to compete with the celebrity status Obama had risen to. And so, McCain’s team heads out in search of a running mate that could somehow eclipse Obama’s star with one that shines even brighter. Unfortunately, their search did not include nearly enough research. Enter Sarah Palin.

And enter Golden Globe winner, Julianne Moore, in what seems like an effortless and yet beautifully layered portrayal of the former Governor of Alaska. While GAME CHANGE does make many a statement about the blunders that went into the rushed decision to bring Palin on to McCain’s ticket, the bigger focus is on Palin’s personal journey. Roach presents Palin as a patriotic woman with only the best of intentions to do right by her country when we first meet her and a bit power crazed by the end. Moore than takes that cue and reminds the viewer that she is also a caring mother, who genuinely connected with a great deal of the American people and who, after realizing she may have bit off more than she could chew, completely retreats from the outside world. Moore makes her human, shows us how scary it must have been for her to go through what she did, coming from where she came from. She isn’t painted as a saint by any means but showing us Sarah’s softer side reminds us that perhaps we too should be showing ours more often than we are now. Who knows? We just might change the game.

The Next Year

1999

So the nominees were:

• Annette Bening in American Beauty
• Janet McTeer in Tumbleweeds
• Julianne Moore in The End of The Affair
• Meryl Streep in Music of the Heart
• Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry

Since I'm busy and have absolutely no motivation to go on with 1938 (well, um, to start it), I'm doing a year I'm really interested in. :) This is the first Bening-Swank fight though it's not as controversial despite the fact that Swank won in an upset. And let's face it, this year looks pretty stunning to me. :)

What do you think? Who's your pick? What's your prediction for my ranking? :) 

086. Game Change

086. (11 Mar) Game Change (2012, Jay Roach) 60



Decidedly not as good their Recount, Jay Roach and Danny Strong's reteaming still has its moments. They present behind the scenes moments of the McCain-Palin campaign here that are downright irresistible, namely whenever there's a major confrontation. Julianne Moore pretty much locks down an Emmy win as Palin, convincingly inhabiting the role with a degree of comfort that's astounding considering how prolific the former governor remains. Her major blowouts with Woody Harrelson and a scene-stealing Sarah Paulson are high points.

Editing is the biggest issue here. The film feels in no way fluid, transitioning roughly from one phase of the campaign to the next. The scenes here don't offer an encapsulation of the entire McCain-Palin drama.

Ed Harris is also a liability. His John McCain is physically unconvincing, but the character's also peripheral to a point he barely serves a purpose. Harris also doesn't present McCain's coldness or awkwardness. It's apt though that, like how Palin stole McCain's thunder, Moore easily overtakes Harris.

CRAZY STUPID LOVE

Written by Dan Fogelman

Directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa

Starring Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone

Jacob: Be better than the Gap.

Well, I'll give them "crazy" and "stupid" but that's pretty much where the love stops for me. CRAZY STUPID LOVE is yet another romantic comedy that gets lost in all the crazy highs and stupid lows we have all come to associate with that elusive and all-encompassing emotion we call love. And while love certainly causes all of us to exercise poor judgment from time to time without question, a good chunk of us still crave its complexity regardless. We've all certainly been there but hopefully when we were there, we were nowhere near as pathetic as this ensemble comedy is.

CRAZY STUPID LOVE is the second directorial effort from duo, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (I LOVE YOU PHILIP MORRIS), and even though two heads should be better than one, you would think no one was in charge from how aimless and tired this plot plays out. Their choices, whey they actually make some, are simple enough for any love struck idiot to understand. We know from the moment the film starts that the love is gone for Cal and Emily (Steve Carell and Julianne Moore) by what they're wearing on their feet. Everyone at the restaurant is playing footsie under the table with their fancy footwear except for these two. Cal is wearing running shoes so we know that he's given up trying. He also drinks from a straw and his wife does the driving so we know he's a sad man. At one point, they end up in an argument in a school parking lot, shortly after it looks like they might reconcile no less, and it begins to rain down heavily on Carell after Moore walks away from him dramatically. "What a cliche," he exclaims and I could not have agreed any more.

After Cal and Emily separate at the beginning of the film, Cal tries to get back out there. This is where he meets Jacob (Ryan Gosling), a smooth operator, who for some inexplicable reason, takes pity on Cal and decides to help him become a real man. Of course, becoming a man people can respect means buying into a world of materialism and detachment, two paths that certainly do not lead to love. As fantastic as it is to watch Gosling let loose for a change, it is clear from the start that ultimately it will be his womanizing ways that will need adjusting in order for him to find true happiness, especially if he intends to land the beautiful Hannah (Emma Stone). And as if there weren't enough tumultuous sub-plots intersecting already, screenwriter, Dan Fogelman (TANGLED), gives us a few more love conundrums to ponder involving a babysitter with an inappropriate crush, a 13-year-old lovesick boy and Kevin Bacon. The point is to distract and make us laugh but all it does is weight the whole project down with heavy awkwardness.

I will not pretend to know too much about love. It seems to me it comes in many different forms and we can only know what it does to us as individuals when we're in it. I can say that my experience has been that it is a transformative emotion well worth every pain that comes with it. It is tricky enough to navigate in the real world though and hard to take seriously in a world as contrived as the one created in CRAZY STUPID LOVE. While Ficarra and Requa attempt to convey how our modern society has made it even more difficult to find love and hold on to it once we have it, they still hold true to the archaic notion that we all have one perfect partner, a "soul mate" if you will, waiting out there for us to find. As far as love in the present day goes, that notion is about as stupid and crazy as they come.

Give Me Moore Sarah Palin, please

And you thought Tina Fey looked like the former Alaskan governor and GOP VP candidate.

This is the first photo of four-time Academy Award nominee Julianne Moore as Palin in HBO's upcoming film, Game Change.  Pretty uncanny, isn't it?  Maybe Moore will be crowned an Emmy champ before she gets her due at the Oscars.

I have some trepidations about this film, since the last presidential biopic I saw (Oliver Stone's W.) left a bad taste in my mouth.  Making Moore look exactly like Palin surely will help viewers know what's going on and add to the film's visual accuracy, but there's always the fear of a campy performance waiting in the wings.  Much like Thandie Newton and the over-the-top cast of W., who looked the part but the extent of believability ended there.  But it is HBO after all, so it's got to be good...right?

Here's looking for the first photo of Ed Harris as John McCain.

(Source: The Hollywood Reporter. Photo: AwardsDaily)




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The Final Conclusion - Best Actress 2002

About the field: Well. If I think about it, this year wasn't as bad as I originally thought. It could have been much stronger, but I think my #1 and #2 were really the highlights and they killed the rest of the competition. They gave performances for the ages and both deserved to win. My #3 has in fact grown on me in these last few days and therefore I give her a half extra Meryl. I was thinking about what would have happened had Tilda Swintion played Virginia Woolf. But that's a different story. I can definitely say that this year turned out to be much different from than I imagined, but I like it this way and it was way more interesting than 1998. OK, so now it's time we got to the ranking.

5. Salma Hayek in Frida
This performance that did not disappoint me as I did not expect much, but I may even say that it is worth watching because of the very strong early scenes. But don't really expect a very towering achievement.

4. Renée Zellweger in Chicago
I am not saying that Zellweger gives a bad performance in Chicago, because occasionally she is actually good. But again, damn it I was so dissatosfied. I was soooo hoping that I would like her, but I did not eventually.

3. Nicole Kidman in The Hours
She has quite grown on me as she is extremely haunting in some of the scenes. I understand both the criticsm and love towards her. This is a bit disappointing performance by a very good actress who could have done more, I think.

2. Diane Lane in Unfaithful
A dynamite performance to say the least. She really gets your guts and doesn't even let you go for a long time (even after watching the film). Lane gave one of the most intimate, credible and unforgettable performances ever. Now I'm really satisfied.

1. Julianne Moore in Far from Heaven
I must say that Julianne Moore gives one of the greatest, most moving and beautiful performances that I have ever seen. She's totally heart- and gutwrenching, moving and will haunt you for a long time.I don't really like the world revelation as I think sometimes it's used without a reason, but here Moore's achievement in this movie is worthy of that term.

So I can proudly announce
that my winner is...
Julianne Moore in Far from Heaven
This was a bit too obvious and OMG she's so beautiful here.

Omissions:

• Isabelle Huppert in The Piano Teacher *My Pick*
• Nia Vardalos in My Big Fat Greek Wedding

So the ranking of the already reviewed years:

1. 1974
2. 1959
3. 2009
4. 1963
5. 1948
6. 2002
7. 1940
8. 1998

So it's time to give clues about my next year, to which I'm really looking forward to. It's often referred to as one of the strongest years ever. Gosh I'm sooo excited, I give you my very easy clues.

• If you don't like deers, instead of going away, think about...
• Mommie Dearest
• Sex and the City: The Origin

So what do you think? Any opinions, observations or off-topic subjects you want to talk about? Don't be shy. BTW has anyone seen The Kids are All Right? I'm so damn curious! Do you think that Moore or Bening can win for it? I'm mostly rooting for Julianne as I'm not a big Bening fan (though she seems to be the more praised one).

Julianne Moore in Far from Heaven

Beautiful, talented Ms. Julianne Moore received her fourth Oscar nomination for playing Cathy Whitaker, a woman who finds out that her husband is cheating on her with other men in Todd Haynes' acclaimed movie, Far from Heaven. I'm pretty sure that if you had asked anyone in 2002 who was going to take home the Best Actress Oscar, they would have said Julianne Moore. She literally swept the critics' awards, however things changed when she lost the Globe and SAG. After that it was all about Nicole and Renée.

Melodrama is not really, my genre as I think they are too over-the-top with emotions and they just really do not give that much to me. That's partly true for the case of Far from Heaven, but it's actually quite well-made, well-directed and brilliantly acted movie. It's score is beautiful and I would even give it the win if The Hours hadn't been nominated. Dennis Quaid gives an excellent performance as the husband and probably would have deserved an Oscar nomination for his work. Same goes for Patricia Clarkson and Dennis Haysbert, who are also very memorable.

What I said in my review of Diane Lane, it's also true here. Far from Heaven is The Julianne Moore Show. But is that a problem? No, a definite NO. Moore probably gives here the performance of a lifetime and I really don't think that she can ever top this achievement of hers (though she got close with The Hours and Boogie Nights). Moore is the greatest and most interesting actress of her generation and her versatility is astonishing. Even when she has a role that is quite similar to another one of hers, she can work wonders.

Cathy is a multi-layered and very complicated character which is very difficult to play, but this does not seem to be a problem for Ms. Moore. She totally captured the heart of this ordinary, perfect 50s housewife. Contrary to Laura Brown, Cathy actually IS happy with this lifestyle, she's deeply satisfied. Or just seems to be. Moore is mindblowing in the scene where her husband does not want to make love because he's so tired. Julianne shows so much love and understanding right there.

It's marvellous how well Julianne understands the sould of Cathy. She thinks that she's perfectly happy, but she starts to feel something she never did before. Also, Moore injects so much poetry, fire and music into her, that she made me feel dizzy (well, almost). I felt that this excellent was going through my brain and my soul. In other words: I felt immediate connection to Cathy.

When she finds out that her husband is a homosexual, her only reaction in her shock is saying, where the bills are (or something, never mind). She loves her husband very much and desperately wants to help him and not for selfish reasons. The priorty for her is family and that's what Moore lets us know from her. However, when she starts to enjoy herself with the gardener, a new Cathy is born and more fascinatingly goes through these changes and never misses an opportunity to amaze us.

Her huge scene when her husband wants to get a divorce is immense. She says almost nothing, but her face and her tears are so utterly real and heartbreaking. I guess this movie was intended to make people sob and I don't think it failed. That's mostly because of the brilliance of the great Ms. Moore.

As I said a new Cathy is born when she befriends the gardener, but I must also mention that Moore does not only nail all the faces of her, but perfectly portrays the mixed emotions of this character. She perfectly shows how much Cathy does not really understand what's going on, all she knows that she's happy this way.

Though she does not have any loud, over-the-top scenes (OK she shouts once) she has the effect of an atomic bomb on you. The beauty of her performance is just as heartbreaking as it was in Audrey Hepburn's perfect turn in The Nun's Story. They are so similar in the type of acting and the effect, despite the fact that the two roles are very different. Well, if I think about it not that much. They are both women who think that they love what they do, but in fact it's not what they HAVE to do.

So to sum up this rave review, I must say that Julianne Moore gives one of the greatest, most moving and beautiful performances that I have ever seen. I don't really like the world revelation as I think sometimes it's used without a reason, but here Moore's achievement in this movie is worthy of that term. She's totally heart- and gutwrenching, moving and will haunt you for a long time (I saw it first in April, but I could have written this same review without rewatching as it lived in me so much). And that train station scene! Oh gosh!

Wow this was a bit lengthier than I like to do usually, but I just couldn't stop raving. :) Comments anyone? To see Far from Heaven click here. I hope it works.

The Next Year

So we have come to our much anticipated 2002. I've been putting it off for like eternity, but now it's finally time to terminate your suspense. This is a very often talked about year, mostly due to the enourmous fanbase of Julianne Moore's performance in Far from Heaven. But we'll see who will get my vote. Will it be the nose, the moustache or the pearls? Or will I prefer dancing or adultery? This doesn't seem to be a very exciting year, but we'll see.


So the nominees were:

• Salma Hayek in Frida
• Nicole Kidman in The Hours*
• Diane Lane in Unfaithful
• Julianne Moore in Far from Heaven
• Renée Zellweger in Chicago

So what are your predictions for my ranking?

P.S. : From now on I will not be really able to do write as frequently as I did, but I will do my best. Thanks for your understanding.
Also, we can also talk a bit about the Emmys in your comments. Were you just as pissed as I was that Julianna Margulies lost? Or any other thoughts?