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Archives For November 30, 1999

Rental Release: Mary & Max

Ashley Walton —  January 31, 2011 — 1 Comment

Mary & Max, a beautiful claymation film from Australia, is the right mixture of sweet, hilarious, and bleak. The film is about two lonely hearts— a young girl and a troubled older man who become strange and awkward pen-pals. Both characters lead pretty depressing lives, but the film shows the charm and hope that shines through simple human interaction.

Max and Mary are voiced by Philip Seymour Hoffman and Toni Collette (both Academy Award winners) who deliver their deadpan lines with perfect cadence. As much as I loved the claymation, the writing was my favorite part this film, chuck full of fresh, interesting, and (cautiously) playful dialogue. I definitely think it’s worth watching. However, you may want to watch it with a comforting pint of Ben and Jerry’s—it’s not exactly cheery.

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Rental Release: Exit Through the Gift Shop

Ashley Walton —  January 22, 2011 — Leave a comment
This film was much more intelligent and complicated than I initially gave it credit for. As usual, I don’t want to give too much away, because this film unwraps itself deliberately and poignantly. I do want to make it clear that this film is not about Banksy. And it’s not even a film about graffiti/street art. Rather, this is a film about what art means and how people interact with it, and the vehicle through which it explores these questions is so interesting and so grounded in a terrifying reality that it took me by surprise. Halfway through the film I thought, “Why is it lingering on these odd moments?” but it made sense as the film progressed (as does the film’s title), and it ended up being one of the most thought-provoking films I’ve seen in a while. It was clever, funny, and earnest, leaving me satisfied and smiling. I recommend this film to anyone who is remotely interested in art and its relationship with the public.
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True Grit: "Looking back is a bad habit."

Ashley Walton —  December 26, 2010 — 1 Comment

If you haven’t seen True Grit, you need to stop reading and buy a ticket right now. I mean it. If you’re reading on, I’ll be upset if you haven’t bought a ticket already. Hands down, this is one of the best films of the year– really fun and really well done: well-paced, well-written, and well-acted.


Before embarking on this adventure, I worried that this western (which one critic compared to Treasure Island– WTF?) would be too contrived; but my worries were put to bed within the first 10 minutes of the film. The way in which Jeff Bridges and Hailee Steinfeld delivered their lines blew me away, each snarky remark perfectly timed and full of sincerity. (I could have done with or without Matt Damon– he was clearly outshined by both his castmates.)


I was in the moment and along for the ride throughout the entire film, swept up by the story and charmed by the dialogue. However, the last 15 minutes of the film pull a flash-forward, which almost always bugs me on principle. But alas, it’s a small complaint for such a great experience. I’m already excited to own this film, so I can repeatedly rewatch and chew on the dialogue some more.

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The Social Network: "Drop the ‘the’"

Ashley Walton —  October 4, 2010 — 2 Comments

Not surprisingly, I give two thumbs up for The Social Network, which has gotten overwhelmingly positive reviews. First and foremost, Aaron Sorkin’s writing blew me away. He transformed a dialogue-heavy film into a rare treat that made me laugh and think at the same time. Aside from the writing, Jesse Eisenberg’s performance was fantastic, and I’m glad he’s been able to prove himself as something more than the poor man’s Michael Cera.

So we all agree it’s a great film, but I think it’s interesting that there’s a lot of talk about the accuracy of the film’s portrayal of Mark Zuckerberg. Certainly, I could see why this wouldn’t be Zuckerberg’s favorite film. However, I think people realize that the story is slanted for the sake of making a dialogue-heavy film exceptionally interesting. And even though Zuckerberg’s character is not particularly likable, he is still presented as a complex individual—good and bad mixed into one. The film definitely presents him as a sort of genius (even if it also presents him as a socially inept schmuck). I readily I admit that some of his comments (although definitely rude) made me feel satisfied and made me wish I were the kind of person with the guts to ask a lawyer, “Did I adequately answer your condescending question?”

The conversation at the beginning of the film serves as a summation for Zuckerberg’s character—for better or for worse. On the one hand, he’s quick, witty and has no trouble following three conversation threads at once. On the other hand, he (perhaps innocently) says some things that makes your jaw drop. And it’s this conversation that sucks you in and sets the tone for the rest of the film.

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The Town: "We’re gonna hurt some people"

Ashley Walton —  September 26, 2010 — Leave a comment

I’m gonna go ahead and jump on the bandwagon and say that you should see The Town. It’s a pretty good Boston crime film (Affleck surprised me with his ability to write) and the cinematogrpahy makes it worth seeing in theaters. It’s not jaw-dropping astounding, but it’s a good film through and through. And let’s face it: there really isn’t much else out, unless you’re planning on seeing that cartoon owl movie or that cartoon dog movie. The good news is Let Me In comes out next weekend! Eeee!

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Easy A: "A is for Awesome"

Ashley Walton —  September 26, 2010 — Leave a comment

I’ve gotta say, Easy A surprised me. I fully expected to be bored to death with another teen movie’s oversimplified dramatics and cheesy one-liners. But this was a rarity in its genre: a smart film. From the beginning, Olive Penderghast (played by the likable Emma Stone) is much more interesting than most teens portrayed in films. She’s smart, seriously witty, and she pokes fun at herself (and at the movie itself in a strange meta-narrative that surprised me with its sophistication). As a bonus, the plot took some turns that I didn’t see coming, which is a rare luxury indeed in a teen comedy, and the journey brings you to a pretty meaningful place in the end. I didn’t feel hit over the head with sentimentality, but I appreciated the film’s final message.

The last complimentary thing I’ll say about this film (I don’t want to sound too much like I’m gushing here) is that I really liked the relationship between Olive and her parents (played by Patricia Clarkson and Stanley Tucci). These parents weren’t written as typical teen-movie parents. They were full-fledged characters in themselves, and they treated Olive as they would an intelligent adult. You could also see where Olive got her intelligence and spunk, as her parents had some of the best lines in the film.

When all’s said and done, this is still a teen comedy. It has its problems, just like any film in its genre, but I think it’s above and beyond most of its competitors. The film has a lot more meat to it than the trailers imply, and it’s definitely at least worth a rent.

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Rental Release: The Art of the Steal

Ashley Walton —  August 22, 2010 — Leave a comment
The Art of the Steal was the most engaging documentary I’ve seen in a long time. It’s about the Barnes Foundation, which houses the most priceless art collection in the United States. When Dr. Albert Barnes died, he left specific instructions in his will for how the art should be displayed and protected, but many people and organizations had other ideas for his collection.
Like any good documentary, this film had me angry and up in arms by the end. As a warning: it’s definitely a slanted telling of the story, but it’s a slant I happen to agree with. With its simple premise, this film explores complex themes of the meaning of art, how art should be displayed, principles of private ownership, and moral obligations as a society. It’s definitely worth a rent. I dare you to not feel passionately about the Barnes Foundation by the end of it.
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Scott Pilgrim vs the World: I’m in lesbian with you

Ashley Walton —  August 17, 2010 — 5 Comments
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You can say a lot of things about Scott Pilgrim vs the World, but you can’t say it isn’t fun. This film was unlike anything I’ve seen, straddling realms of video games and comic books, with bits of reality thrown in. Video game icons and comic book expletives garnished the screen, which was weird, to say the least. But I think it worked for the feel of the film, and every once in a while they were used in a clever way.

 
There were lots of good moments where the film’s cleverness surprised me. The character banter had more wit than anything I’ve seen in a while. Having said that, there were a few things that bugged me a lot: one of the exes breaks into song (ugh), Pilgrim waits by the door right after making an Amazon purchase, and there are a few parts where swear words are bleeped out. I thought all these elements pushed things too far, and because they weren’t funny, they didn’t carry enough weight to support themselves. There were also times when the film felt like it was a person trying really hard to be cool.

Despite its faults, this film left me with overwhelming fuzzy feelings of geekiness (it might have been the old-school Sega and Nintendo sounds scattered throughout). In the end, I liked the way it was written, and I thought it was much funnier than the “comedies” that have plagued theaters recently (Dinner for Schmucks, The Other Guys).

I definitely recommend seeing this in theater, especially because there isn’t anything else coming out until the end of October (Let Me In). It’s a sad year, folks. Better get your ya ya’s out while you can.

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More Comic-Con Goodness: Megamind & Cowboys and Aliens

Ashley Walton —  July 29, 2010 — Leave a comment

It’s going to take me forever to post all the cool stuff at Comic-Con, so I hope my readers will bear with my self-indulgence. Here are two panels that I wasn’t excited for, but that won me over with their Comic-Con charm and super-cool movie clips.

If you couldn’t tell from the picture, Will Ferrell dressed up like Megamind for the movie’s panel, which I have to say, was pretty charming. There weren’t as many people who dressed up this year, and it was fun to see an actor go the extra mile and do something that took time and effort. Not to mention, his banter with Tina Fey and Jonah Hill made the panel the funniest at the Con.
The clips also made the movie look better than I’d thought. I’m going to give away a little bit of a spoiler, but I think it’s worth sharing because it made me want to see the movie. It was clear that Megamind kills Metroman at the beginning of the film, and that the rest of the film deals with Megamind coping with the boredom that comes after killing his archnemesis. It seemed like a much more sophisticated plot than the previews had shown.
The Cowboys and Aliens panel was a surprise hit. First of all, it was Harrisson Ford’s first appearance at Comic-Con (hence he made it look like it took handcuffs and an escort to get him there). Since Ford is a geek god between Star Wars, Indiana Jones, and Blade Runner, it was the most insane reception I’ve ever seen in my 5 years in Hall H. Between the screaming and roaring applause, it felt like the walls were going to cave in.
The panel also included Daniel Craig and Sam Rockwell. What could be cooler than Indiana Jones, James Bond, and Justin Hammer all in one place? I acknowledge the dumbess of the title Cowboys and Aliens, but the actors were impressive and the clips looked pretty awesome– like a classic western with some aliens thrown in. I was sold.
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Comic-Con Sunday

Ashley Walton —  July 26, 2010 — 3 Comments

My last day at geek mecca. However, this isn’t the end of my Comic-Con blog posts, because I have lots of stuff to fill in.

The cast of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia unveiled their premiere for next season. It’s entitled, “Who got Dee pregnant?” and needless to say, it’s hilarious. Kaitlin Olson, the actress who plays Sweet Dee, actually showed up to Comic-Con with a bun in the oven. The main characters also had Cricket on stage with them and assured us that the gang is not through torturing poor Cricket.
                                  
This was one of the highlights of my day– these two girls “dressed up” like Hall H victims. In case you haven’t heard, on Saturday, two guys got into a scuffle over a seat in Hall H and one guy stabbed the other in the eye with a pen. I was there, and I can tell you, the seat wasn’t even good.
                              
The final hurrah of Comic-Con was the screening of the Buffy episode “Once More With Feeling,” which is a sing-along with a Rocky Horror vibe to it. I yelled “Shut up, Dawn!” so many times that I lost my voice. We also yelled, “Bite me!” whenever Spike appeared on screen and “Liar!” when Buffy tells Spike she’s never going to be with him and when Xander tells Anya he’ll never leave her. If that wasn’t enough fun, we were given clever traffic tickets (which I’ll post later) and little monster finger puppets (so we could say, “Grrr! Arrrgh!” during the closing credits).
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