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What did you watch while snowed in?
I noticed over the weekend this blog got a flurry (rim shot) of comments; thanks to all for reading/opining. I presume since so many people were snowed in, a few decided to check this blog out.
Which brings to mind a thought - since so many people were stuck at home this past weekend, I bet a bunch of you watched movies. I’d love to know what you saw.
Here’s what I watched over the weekend, and on other recent dates, just to stay caught up with that “What are you watching” concept.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day: If you thought a foot of snow was going to keep me away from Amy Adams’ new movie, now in select theaters, you must not read this blog much. Once again she is irrepressibly effervescent as Delysia Lafosse, a singer/actress who hops between men until she meets the title character (Frances McDormand) and they teach each other a thing or two. Adams and McDormand play off each other extremely well, making up for the somewhat shallowly drawn male characters. It’s not as fast-paced as the classic screwball comedies that inspired it, but the movie remains a very entertaining throwback. GRADE: A-
Persepolis: I found this highly acclaimed animated film somewhat overpraised. Although its concept of a 2D black and white animated film dramatizing life in Iran is often bold and brilliant, the execution is sometimes lacking, particularly with its ending that putters to a stop. Still, this is undeniably a one-of-a-kind experience: GRADE: B+
Girl 27: I found this documentary through Netflix’s Instant Viewing feature; indeed, the film was made by Netflix’s production company. It uncovers the untold story of Patricia Douglas, a contract dancer who was raped by an MGM executive. She took the case to court, but the then-mighty studio succeeded in quashing the case and ruining Douglas’ reputation - and her life. It’s a fascinating story which doesn’t need the cutesy use of film clips that drag it down. GRADE: B+
Ordinary People: This won the 1980 Oscar for Best Picture over Raging Bull. No, it did not deserve to win instead of the Scorsese classic, but it’s also not the overrated tripe some detractors make it out to be. Timothy Hutton (who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar, even though he’s really the lead) excels as a damaged young man struggling to cope after his brother’s death in a boating accident. I wasn’t convinced by a crucial third-act pivot, because it hinges around a character we don’t know well enough, but on the whole, the film tells a fascinating, multi-layered story of how people deal with (or don’t deal with) tragedy. GRADE: A-
Ryan’s Daughter: Many critics were correct in saying that the love story of David Lean’s 1970 film is really too small for the epic treatment it gets, but those critics were incorrect in savaging the film. Like all of Lean’s work, it’s visually ravishing, and its story of an Irish girl who has an affair with a British soldier is moving thanks to strong performances. Besides, any film that can successfully cast Robert Mitchum as a cuckold deserves a gold star of some kind. GRADE: B
The Talk of the Town: Cary Grant plays a fugitive from justice, wrongly accused of a crime he didn’t commit. This hasn’t aged quite so well as many of the other films that come in a Cary Grant box set, but it’s still a sharp movie that was ahead of its time in how it took on wrongheaded media circuses. GRADE: A-
The Guns of Navarone: Actually, I haven’t finished watching this yet (I’ve got a little over an hour left), but what I’ve seen so far of this WW2 adventure is hugely entertaining. I’ll get back to you on this one. GRADE: Incomplete, but high
So … what did you watch during the big storm over the weekend? No limits here: it can be on the big or small screen, a newly discovered movie or an old favorite. And hey, even if you weren’t snowed in, tell me what you’ve seen lately. I sincerely hope your weekend wasn’t ruined by 10,000 B.C.
Speaking of that stone-dead movie, here’s a very amusing take from Premiere critic Glenn Kenny, who took a pass on it but still took some shots at it.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Categories: In Area Theaters, Moviegoing, On Video/DVD
Comments
By vickie
March 11, 2008 11:18 AM | Link to this
Watched the Darjeeling Bros (UGH) Beowolf (not bad), and a lot of Fox News for the politics, and of course the Weather ChannnelBy SRCputt
March 10, 2008 2:57 PM | Link to this
It’s March, so I watched lots and lots of college basketball. I showed my youngest daughter Princess Bride for the first time, and showed my teenage daughter The Sixth Sense and 12 Monkeys. These were films I chose because I already knew them to be excellent, so, not much to review here, move along…