Ed's Review Dot Com

Color Force, Film Four, Random House Films,

Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess, Patricia Clarkson, Ken Scott, Romola Garai, Rafe Spall, Tom Mison, Jodie Whittaker, Joséphine de La Baume

Emma (Anne Hathaway) and Dexter (Jim Strugess) connect on the day of their college graduation in 1988 and almost sleep together. But in the end they decide to be close friends and Emma stays the night. The date is July 15th. They remain friends throughout their lives as they grow apart, then grow back closer again. In order to cover their lives from 1988 through 2009, the film shows us one day, July 15th, of each year, just to check in with the two of them, whether they are together or apart, so see how their lives are progressing. Emma is quiet and reclusive, she’s very smart, but success eludes her because of her nature. Dexter on the other hand, has everything handed to him. Finding women very easily, and finding success as a TV host comes simply for him. Dexter finds and marries a rich girl Sylvie (Romola Garai) and has a daughter, but his destructive nature screws that up and they divorce. Emma eventually meets and marries Ian (Refe Spall) whom she doesn’t really love. But until the end, the friendship lingers on.

This is a beautiful movie with lots of wonderful scenery (It was filmed in Scotland). It is a slow film, very romantic, but slow developing. It’s a little hard to keep up with. A calendar on the screen shows us which year it is, but it’s hard to understand a story that takes place over one day a year for over 20 years. It’s happy, and sad, and tragic. But if you want to watch this, my recommendation is to pay close attention to the film. This is not a “background filler” film, or you’ll be totally lost. Also it helps to keep in mind that there is no real special significance to July 15th. It’s not like some films where they meet one day a year. It’s just a chosen checkpoint to see how they’ve been doing over the last 12 months. So it’s rather choppy at times. But the story is really there, if you have patience for the slow development, and if you are paying attention to what is going on.

This film is based on a novel, and I bet the book is very good to read. Making a book into a movie is sometimes quite a challenge, which I think is what they faced here. I have not seen or read the book. However the film is very pretty, both Emma and Dexter are very interesting people, and are very real, flaws and all, and the acting is spectacular along with the beautiful scenery. I recommend this film if you’re a fan of slow romantic drama films and are willing to invest the time to watch it closely. Otherwise, you’ll probably be disappointed.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Paramount Pictures, Skydance Productions, Bad Robot

Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Simon Pegg, Paula Patton, Ving Rhames, Léa Seydoux, Josh Holloway, Tom Wilkinson, Michael Nyqvist, Anil Kapoor

Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is in a Russian prison. When the IMF team tries to break him out, he has to go twice as far to pick up someone else. But the reason IMF broke him out was because the needed him. A rogue Russian terrorist named Hendricks (Michael Nyqvist) has stolen the launch codes for Russian nuclear warheads, and using a satellite link, he’s planning to start a war. He’s an arms dealer, and providing weapons for both sides will make him ruler of the whole world. The clock is ticking, and Hunt’s team has to save the world.

Ok, so I’m about to throw ALL my credibility out of the window here. But I have a major bone to pick with Mister Cruise for which I’m not really ready to forgive. Obviously the film made a bazillion dollars in the box office, so people love this kind of fantasy unrealistic thriller, but once again we see Tom Cruise defile the memory of Jim Phelps, the hero of the IMF.

I grew up with Mission Impossible, and I loved that series. Mr. Phelps was a true American hero, just like James Bond is for England. Now I know that Mr. Cruise wanted to take over the role of galactic hero of the IMF, but the way he did it is unforgivable.

Suppose Sean Connery didn’t want to play James Bond anymore. So how could someone else come in and take over the role? Well, what if instead of Roger Moore becoming 007, what if they wrote a plot twist that James Bond was somehow a double agent for the Russians and was responsible for selling Britain (and the rest of the free world) down the river simply for the money, only to die a miserable death on to apologize for being a traitor by saying, “Hey, I needed the dough”? Would that sell? The moment I saw what they did to bury Mr. Phelps and let Ethan, the wimpy tough guy, Hunt take over the IMF, I knew it was a lousy deal.

So now we have version four of the Phelps wannabe trying to save the world. Well, if you love beautiful shots of Dubai and Moscow and India, and lots of crazy chases and miraculous stunts and big huge explosions, then this has all of that. But it so far fetched in the context of things, that none of this could ever happen. It’s not Mission Impossible anymore. It seems they simply try to think of the most outrageous ridiculous stunts that make this look more like Lost in Space than James Bond. (Ok, James Bond got a little silly when Jaws rode a space station down from outer space while it crashed and he walked away. That was a little silly too, I admit.) But the original Bond as well as the original IMF used their heads and technology in a realistic way to make it exciting, not just impossible stunts and huge explosions. I’m truly afraid that Pixar had too much to do with this film, and may have cartooned it up a bit much.

I don’t want to put spoilers in here, but you’ll see a scene in Dubai when Ethan has to climb up to the computer room. See if you believe that one. Also there is a scene in San Francisco at the very end. I don’t think I’ll buy that either. I’m used to the timer slowly ticking down to 0 for the end of the world, and the good guy stopping it at the last second….but here we get a timer that expires, and the event happens, but it doesn’t and there’s still another timer which also expires and another event happens, but it’s still time to save it. What the heck? When you see the whole San Francisco scene you’ll know what I mean. (By the way, the device flies over Pixar’s headquarters at one point.)

Granted, you have to suspend belief in fantasy movies, but there’s no reason to dump on Mr. Phelps memory and get out of all scrapes with a ridiculous plot device instead of using your brain. Then we hear that there is a new character introduced in this film, Brandt (Jeremy Renner) to replace Ethan Hunt as Tom Cruise wants to now drop out of the franchise. It’s odd that the whole speech between Hunt and Brant is oddly similar to the story Mr Phelps told to Ethan in the first MI film. Except that Cruise (Hunt) is not yet a traitor scum to his county and the free world. Let’s hope that if he does step down, that he destroys his character too like he did to the former leader rather than “retiring” as a “hero”.

That’s why in 2012, I’d still rather watch the original TV show! My $.02.

P.S. I have a wife who’s a Cruise fan, so I’m sure I will see future MI movies as well. 😉
This is the longest review I’ve ever written. Ethan Hunt must have me really riled up.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Silver Pictures

Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Noomi Rapace, Jared Harris, Eddie Marsan, Rachel McAdams, Kelly Reilly, Geraldine James

Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey, Jr.) and his friend Doctor Watson (Jude Law) are fighting the toughest opponent yet, someone who loves games and puzzles as much as Holmes does. He’s Professor Moriarty (Jared Harris). Watson is getting married, and Holmes manages to screw up the whole thing with a little help from his brother Mycroft (Stephen Fry) who loves calling him Sherly, and a gypsy named Sim (Noomi Rapace).

It took some getting used to seeing the way Downey plays Sherlock. Basil Rathbone he’s not! He’s more of a James (Wild Wild) West kind of guy, cheeky, and reckless, brilliant, and clever beyond belief, as he stumbles his way through the the case. I’m getting used to it now, and he’s actually insane, I’m convinced, as most geniuses are I guess. 🙂 But there is one trick that they use in this movie that I really enjoyed, and I haven’t really noticed it being used as well as how they do it in this film. Suddenly at a moment of great danger, everything stops, freezes, and then Holmes “sees” how it’s going to go and predicts what will happen in extreme slow motion. Then, it picks right up at the freeze frame, and the adventure happens, sometimes as he predicts, and sometimes with surprising (to us as well as to him) turnabouts that change everything. It’s a very clever way to play it.

I really enjoyed Robert Downey Jr. as Sherlock Holmes, once again, and this story certainly matches up and exceeds the previous ones too. It was well worth watching. Try to catch this film in the theater if you can, as it’s really worth watching it on the big screen. This is one of the best of the new films for the holiday season, in my opinion. I love the clever twists and turns, and this is my kind of movie.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Gravier Productions, Mediapro, Televiso de Catalunya (TV3),

Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams, Marion Cotillard, Michael Sheen, Adrien Brody, Kathy Bates, Carla Bruni, Gad elmaleh, Kurt Fuller

Director Woody Allen turns the lens on Paris as a young engaged couple, Gil (Owen Wilson) and Inez (Rachel McAdams) are there on business. But Inez seem to pulling away from Gil, or is it mutual? Gil loves Paris and wants to return there after their marriage. Inez seems to favor her ex-boyfriend, a know-it-all pompous fake intellectual who Gil cannot stand. While walking in the streets of Paris at night, a little drunk, at midnight, a cab pulls up beside Gil and asks him to get in. When he does, something magical happens that changes him forever.

This, like many Woody Allen films, is either loved or hated. I must admit I am not a big fan of Woody Allen films. They are often bizarre and very difficult to figure out. This one is definitely quirky. But though I never got such huge hits as “Annie Hall” which simply leaves me flat, I really enjoyed this film. I’m not sure why, really, but it’s a really interesting concept. I am purposely trying to say as little as possible about the magic that happens in this film, as I don’t want to give away too much, because if you manage to stumble on this film without knowing the twist, you’ll enjoy it a lot more. But the basis of this film, as in most Allen films, is a bad relationship. These two people should never have been together as they have no interests in common. But they both end up seeking out that which makes them happy and finding out what that is keeps us interested in them.

Owen Wilson was very good in this film. He’s a quirky actor to begin with, and plays a certain type of lovable oaf very well (such as in Meet the Parents, Drillbit Taylor, or You, Me, and Dupree, where he’s really great, but in this film he plays a much more serious (although somewhat ridiculous) role, and this is perhaps one of his best performances. This is a very thought provoking film, that is lots of fun, and is one of Woody Allen’s best, in my opinion. I really enjoyed the strangeness of this story, and I wish I could find my own taxi at midnight to take me to the place I’d like to go. I really enjoyed this movie, and recommend it. I nearly passed on it, and I’m glad I gave it a chance.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog

Movie Rentals Releasing Tuesday January 3, 2012

• Contagion [Click here for Ed’s Review]
• Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark
• Shark Night
• I Don’t Know How She Does It
• The Guard
• The Last Lions