Ed's Review Dot Com

Ocean Blue Entertainment,

Ed Harris, Michael Peña, Eva Longoria, Amy Madigan, Aden Young

A former Arizona sheriff’s wife, Olivia (Amy Madigan) is killed while riding her horse along their ranch property near the Mexican border. When her husband Roy (Ed Harris) comes to find her, it appears to him that she was killed by some Mexican guys who were sneaking across the border, and he sets out to find them and see they are punished. But there are many layers to this film, and as he peels back layer by layer, the story may be quite different in the end.

This is, first and foremost, a western. Western’s are very rare in today’s cinema. That fact on it’s own is a big plus for the film. But I’ve seen several pretty good border crossing movies, and I truly think this is the best of the genre. This movie doesn’t really pick sides, but is an excellent look at all the different sides of the issue. As in real life, there is no black and white, but many shades of gray. The acting in this film is wonderful. Ed Harris is perfect as the ex-sheriff who is love with his wife, but who resents her kindness to the people who enter illegally. The story is very rich, and excellently crafted, and they told the story in a beautiful way. We know the truth from the moment it happened, but the truth, although Roy tries his best to find it for good or bad, is not the important thing. It’s how the facts affect everyone in a different way. I felt this was one of the best acted, best told stories I have seen in a long long time. This is a film that ought to be gathering much more attention than it did, and it’s certainly one of those hidden gems that come and go without attracting a lot of buzz, but if you’re lucky enough to stumble across it, it’s well worth your time. I really enjoyed this story, and I bet you will too.

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C Plus Pictures, La Pistola, Attic Light Films,

Kristen Bell, Mamie Gummer, Martin Starr, Alex Shaffer, Amy Madigan, Joshua Harto, David Lambert

Leigh (Kristen Bell) was her school valedictorian and had a job in the city as a reporter, but she’s not happy. She decided to throw in the towel and move back home with her parents. She doesn’t fit in very well, and it causes a lot of friction, but she takes her old job as a lifeguard at the pool, and starts up a relationship with a young boy that threatens to blow the whole family, and perhaps the whole town apart.

Leigh is afraid to grow up. It’s that simple. Being born female, she has the option of blowing off her career and her adult life and returning to her childhood. It’s clear her family is not too happy about her returning home, but she really doesn’t care. The fact that she starts hanging out with teenagers and trying to relive her childhood days is also a bit off putting. I couldn’t find any sympathy for this character, nor could I deal with her behavior. She needs to grow up. This is one of those movies that seems to just show us the everyday life of some characters without any resolution or judgement of any kind. Sometimes we like our movies to have a point. This really doesn’t. It’s just what it is. I agree with others that Kristen Bell nailed the character, but for what purpose? The time spent watching this could have been just as well spent watching the clothes spin around in the dryer. I didn’t absolutely hate this, but I didn’t care for it very much. To be honest, I really disliked Leigh, and felt like she deserved what she got, and much more. There are days when we’d all like to chuck it in and go back home again, but we don’t do it. We have mortgages and bills and taxes and families to care for, so we keep on getting up and going to work. This is life, and this romanticizing going back to relive your childhood is not very attractive. Leigh needs to grow up.

EdG – EdsReview Dot Com – A Movie Review Blog