053. Citizen Ruth

053. (06 Feb) Citizen Ruth (1996, Alexander Payne) 76



Considering how middlebrow his work is now, it's hard to recall Alexander Payne once made exceptional edgy comedies. Citizen Ruth is the ballsiest of them all, going full force at both pro-life and pro-choice radicals. It's sharp-toothed comedy at its finest thanks to the always wonderful Laura Dern. She finds humor in places where there shouldn't be any, crafting a character who's too self-centered and oblivious to realize her own awfulness. Most of the supporting cast is super, namely Mary Kay Place and Swoosie Kurtz. Burt Reynolds' appearance as an evangelical pro-lifer with a child assistant who massages him shirtless is a rare misstep; it's a broad joke in a film that's otherwise above that.

006. Jurassic Park III

006. (06 Jan) /Jurassic Park III/ (2001, Joe Johnston) 30



As dopey as The Lost World: Jurassic Park may be, it's never remotely as stupid as this is at every turn. There are a couple scares that work, like when Tea Leoni dangles from a tree while raptors try to eat her, but for the most part it's so conceptually unsound that this is always more baffling than entertaining. Funniest moments include Sam Neill dreaming about a talking raptor, Leoni channeling her best Kate Capshaw when she's face to face with a skeleton, and the happy ending that comes out of nowhere and defies all logic. Poor Laura Dern at least avoids being trapped on-screen for long.

205. The Master

205. (16 Sep) The Master (2012, Paul Thomas Anderson)* 76



It's not disappointing to see Paul Thomas Anderson in such similar territory to There Will Be Blood, but the earlier film's such a stronger indictment of religion and a more ordered, compelling narrative. It's still extraordinary to see Joaquin Phoenix and Philip Seymour Hoffman build off one another's performances with such collaborative spirit. The deprogramming scene, in particular, is an acting master class. Each man's use of charisma to different ends is intriguing enough and there's much to be said for the strength of Anderson's script. However, the film's final third feels sluggish, distractingly on-the-nose when when Amy Adams delivers a monologue in her last scene. Adams seems slightly out of place here, simply not keeping up with her co-stars. With the most limited of screentime, Laura Dern makes a far better impression. It's difficult to imagine anything will come close to matching Mihai Malaimare Jr.'s perfect cinematography.

155. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains

155. (16 Aug) Ladies and Gentlemen, the Fabulous Stains (1981, Lou Adler) 66



Lou Adler confidently straddles the line between droll and dreary. Despite the on-screen zaniness, there's an authenticity in every run-down, seedy setting. The harshness of their surroundings translates to the cast as actors are either sharp-featured or, in the case of future stars Diane Lane and Laura Dern, heavily and unflatteringly made up. Lane is astonishingly self-confident, believably becoming a local celebrity with vague and vitriloic rants. Commentaries on the disconnect between talent and fame or how easily it is to be perceived as a sell-out seem eerily ahead of their time in the age of Youtube and countless singing competitions.

153. The Baby Dance

153. (14 Aug) The Baby Dance (1999, Jane Anderson) 65



The Baby Dance attacks the class divide in creative, but fairly unsubtle ways. Whenever money enters the conversation, pleasant chatter turns passive aggressive and occasionally escalates further. Laura Dern, as a poor pregnant woman offering her child for adoption, is the standout here. Stockard Channing holds her own against her, at her best delivering a monologue about a miscarriage she had in a public restroom. Jane Anderson has a way of getting to the core of her characters in such moments, writing dialogue that show guarded characters at their most sorrowful or desperate. The last act is almost too bleak to be bearable or believable.

049. Smooth Talk

049. (10 Feb) Smooth Talk (1985, Joyce Chopra) 60



Laura Dern makes a delightful impression here, especially in the strong first hour. As an alluring, lost teenager, you get a wonderful sense of how foolish and idealistic the age can be. She and her friends flirt with boys at the mall and put themselves in dangerous situations in attempts to win male attention.

When her innocence is lost as a mysterious stranger arrives, the film certainly loses its footing. The stranger is played intriguingly, but not brilliantly by Treat Williams. It's hardly his fault that the film loses itself at this point. It's being true to Joyce Carol Oates' story, though the ending is far less ambiguous.