American Hustle

Director David O. Russell doesn’t really have a repertory company, but all four of his lead actors in American Hustle have worked for him in either 2010’s The Fighter or 2012’s Silver Linings Playbook. They all perform at a high level in American Hustle, working from a script that gives each of the four opportunities to shine. On January 16, expect a name or two or three from this ensemble to receive Oscar noms.

The root word of con, as in con man or con game, is confidence. In American Hustle, Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) gains the confidence of marks who believe that he can get them loans for 50K. But first, they have to give him negotiable checks for 5-thousand to get the ball rolling.

After Irving meets Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) at a party and discovers they share a love of Duke Ellington, they become lovers and partners in crime. Sydney joins him in his con game. She fakes a British accent and implies that she can get money from friends in high places in the UK banking world.

When the con man and woman are caught by the feds, they are enlisted to aid the FBI in scamming politicians. American Hustle is not the story of the Abscam sting, which saw politicians accepting bribes. But true-life events inform much of what happens in AH.

Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper) is the agent who runs the sting and becomes enamored with Sydney. Irving’s wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) seems at first to be a shallow, unaware housewife but later is revealed to be more clever than initially revealed.

Carmen Polito (Jeremy Renner with a pompadour Conway Twitty would’ve envied) is the mayor of Camden, New Jersey who wants to help his state get the money to help develop Atlantic City. While setting him up for the sting, Irving finds that he actually likes Carmen—which makes things interesting.

Another Russell alum (who appeared in Silver Linings Playbook), Robert DeNiro, plays a Miami mobster gets involved when a fake Arab sheik is presented as the deep pockets money man. Louis CK has a small role as agent DiMaso’s boss.

American Hustle has all the elements a movie needs to succeed: a compelling story, interesting characters and a clever telling of that story. It’s not the best movie of 2013, but it will show up on numerous top ten lists for the year, as it should.

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Inside Llewyn Davis

Is Llewyn Davis (Oscar Isaac) a good guy, a jerk or just a victim of circumstances? He’s a folk singer in NYC’s Greenwich Village in the early 60’s. Life keeps punching him in the face but he keeps getting up and chasing his dream.

Inside Llewyn Davis is a movie about a particular character in a particular setting. The film’s story is almost superfluous.

Music is the fuel that powers ILD and its characters. Most of the performances are top notch; all are, at the very least, passable. Oscar Issac can sing and he can act.

Llewyn has left the merchant marine to sing. He was part of a duo, now he’s a solo act. He’s good but not great. His world includes club owners, record company execs and fellow musicians. Chums Jim and Jean (Justin Timberlake and Carey Mulligan) are a couple who occasionally vocalize with Llewyn.

They’re among the many who give Llewyn a place to crash. Jean has also been intimate with Llewyn who, on learning of her pregnancy, arranges a then illegal abortion (which she wants). At one home where he sleeps, the cat follows him out as the door locks and he takes care of the kitty (sort of).

The Coen brothers, Joel and Ethan, share writing and directing on Inside Llewyn Davis. As with many of their lead characters, Llewyn is conflicted. Does he stick with music or go back to the merchant marine? Does he stay in New York or hitch a ride to Chicago to pursue his dream? Can he tolerate his family or is a clean break necessary? Does he want to perform the songs he sang with his former partner or leave them behind?

John Goodman appears in his 6th Coen brothers film as Roland Parker, an obese, sickly, eccentric musician who gives Llewyn a ride to Chicago. The roadtrip provides a change of scenery and provides Llewyn with a frank appraisal of his potential.

I’ve seen the music biz (performance venues and record labels) chew artists up and spit them out. I’ve seen artists who may have found the path to success rocky and gave up too soon. I’ve also seen artists who refuse to give up, despite clear signs that they should move on. Llewyn has the desire and the tenacity. Which may or may not be a good thing.

As referenced above, don’t go to see Inside Lllewyn Davis for its story. Go for the setting—the time, the place, the mood. And go for the characters, especially Llewyn.

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Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues is a review-proof movie. The promotion for this film has been non-stop for months. Many tickets will be sold on opening weekend, no matter whether A2: TLC gets thumbs up or thumbs down from critics.

The current status of the 2004 release Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy as a highly quotable cult favorite has added to the anticipation.

Now the new movie is here. And the gang from the 2004 Anchorman is back. Along with Burgundy, the news team members are Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), Brick Tamland (Steve Carell) and Champ Kind (David Koechner). Also returning is newswoman Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate), who is now (tiny spoiler) Mrs. Burgundy.

This time the news team is moving from San Diego to New York to join a CNN type operation. Upon arrival, they’re told that they’ll be working the 2:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. shift. Burgundy deviates from the prompter copy and, despite the poor time slot, ends up making the show and himself a huge hit.

Burgundy’s rival at the network is anchorman Jack Lime (James Marsden) whose ego and vanity rival Ron’s. News director is Linda Jackson (Meagan Good), an African American, whose relationship with Ron leads to an uncomfortable but funny visit with her relatives.

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues has some hilarious bits and some that fall flat. But credit Ferrell and his co-writer and the movie’s director Adam McKay with keeping stuff coming non-stop. While some of the humor is low, much of it is clever.

If you’ve seen the film’s trailers, you’ve already seen some of its funny stuff. You’ve also seen at least one scene (involving a gay character) that was in trailers, but didn’t make the final cut.

You did not see the film’s many great cameos, which I will not list… so you can be surprised! (Will other reviewers show such restraint? I hope so.) Many of the cameos happen during a classic scene that occurs when Burgundy is on his way to his son’s piano recital. (Again, I won’t spill the beans describing the scene.)

This funny sequel does not surpass the original, but comes darn close. A2: TLC is a worthy successor to A: TLORB. Stay silly, Ron Burgundy!

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug

The visual effects in The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug are incredible. The movie looks great from first frame to last. But the movie lacks the perfect mix of peril and playfulness that made last year’s The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey one of my top ten movies of 2012.

The second movie of any planned trilogy has a primary function: to set up the concluding episode. TH: TDOS does that. And it entertains along the way.

The dwarves and their hobbit Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) continue on their journey to reclaim their homeland, addressing dangers along the way. The Orcs pursue the dwarves on a river chase that is one of the all-time great movie chase scenes. A bit of welcome help comes from new character Tauriel (Evangeline Lilly) who has excellent battle skills and looks gorgeous.

Tauriel adds tastefully sexy eye candy for the guys and offers real girl power for female fans. The appearance of Legolas (Orlando Bloom), a Lord of the Rings character, may be another ploy to make The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug more appealing to women.

Following a visit to the village of Laketown, the clever Bilbo manages to find his way into the mountain lair of Smaug. The dragon Smaug is frighteningly menacing in appearance and, importantly, in sound. (That’s Benedict Cumberbatch providing the Smaug voice.) While Bilbo deals with the dragon, the wizard Gandolf (Ian McKellan) is off on a different mysterious path, leaving the dwarves behind.

As with The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, much is accomplished in this second segment, but plenty more is left unresolved. To be continued, as they say, in 2014.

I mentioned to a movie promotion person that, while I did not enjoy The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug as much as last year’s Hobbit film, I can’t wait to see this new one again. Last year’s film felt somehow fresher, yet TH: TDOS has much to offer. See it and make your own comparison.

 

 

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Out of the Furnace

Gritty is the best word to describe the setting, the characters and the story in Out of the Furnace. Director Scott Cooper, who struck gold in 2009 with his rookie effort Crazy Heart, falls a bit short with OOTF. He has assembled a strong cast that works hard to tell a revenge story that’s, unfortunately, not unlike other revenge stories.

The Baze brothers, Russell (Christian Bale) and Rodney (Casey Affleck) live in the rundown town of North Braddock, PA, just a few miles up the Monongahela from Pittsburgh. Russell goes to work at the town’s steel mill where his father worked. Rodney wants something different. He seeks it via gambling and bare knuckle fighting.

One night while driving after drinking a few beers, Russell hits another car, killing a kid. He goes to prison for a brief sentence. Rodney, meanwhile, goes to the Iraq war and returns with demons.

When Rodney runs up gambling debts to John (Willem Dafoe), he begs for a chance to earn money in a fight in a backwoods venue run by outlaw Harlan DeGroat (Woody Harrelson). Harlan is a meth dealer, a killer and an all-around bad egg. The film’s opening scene demonstrates his temper and abusive behavior.

The fight is vicious. Rodney takes the dive he promised, but, as he and John return to town, Harlan and his henchmen block their way and detain them. Russell then plots his course of revenge.

Local police chief Wesley Barnes (Forest Whittaker) warns Russell against chasing down the culprit on his home turf. When Russell goes after Harlan anyway, the rural cop (who’d been alerted by Barnes) sends him home. Ultimately the showdown occurs back in North Braddock after Russell lures Harlan to town.

Zoe Saldana appears as Russell’s girlfriend. Sam Sheppard has a small role as Russell’s uncle.

Cooper hits several sweet notes in the film, including an effective sequence that cuts back and forth between a deer hunt and a boxing match. And the acting talent he has assembled is impressive. But once the film’s story is established, its outcome is predictable.

Christian Bale again shows his range as an actor in this working class tale. His strong performance may be the best reason to see Out of the Furnace.

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Nebraska

Nebraska is one of the year’s best movies and Bruce Dern gives one of the year’s best performances. Huge credit goes to screenwriter Bob Nelson and director Alex Payne for their story, their characters and their settings.

If you’ve ever heard or read about Garrison Keillor’s fictional Lake Wobegon, Minnesota, or if you have spent time in a rural plains community, you’ll recognize many of the people and places in Nebraska.

Hawthorne, the town in Nebraska where much of the movie takes place, has both Lutheran and Catholic churches, plenty of bars and large plots of farmland surrounding the town. It’s the hometown of Woody Grant (Dern) and his wife Kate (June Squibb). They live in Billings, Montana now.

The journey to Nebraska begins when Woody gets a letter in the mail naming him the winner of a million dollars. He wants to go to Lincoln, Nebraska to cash it in. Woody’s son David (Will Forte) finally agrees to drive his dad from Billings to Lincoln. After an accident slows them down, they decide to stop in Hawthorne and spend the weekend with Woody’s brother and his family.

Kate and David’s brother Ross (Bob Odenkirk) also head over to Hawthorne and a family reunion of sorts gets underway. Old memories are recalled. Will runs into his former business partner and town blowhard Ed Pegram (Stacy Keach) who stirs up old turmoil. David learns things about his family that he never knew.

A favorite scene is a cemetery visit where tombstones elicit memories of past family members, friends, lovers and enemies. (I lived a version of that scene in my own life in 2009 with a visit to Gully, Minnesota, where my father-in-law and many more of my wife’s relatives are buried.) A visit to the old abandoned homestead brings back memories, some unhappy, for Woody.

Nebraska has several side characters that add spark to the film, especially David’s two cousins who are hilarious. Woody’s brother Ray, incidentally, is played by Rance Howard, father of Ron “Opie” Howard.

Director Alexander Payne shot Nebraska in black and white, which is perfect for showcasing a town that probably looks about the same as it did 50 years ago. He punctuates the film with lingering shots of plains landscapes, which communicate the sense of being in the middle of nowhere.

Dern won the best actor award at the Cannes Film Festival and is a likely candidate for an Oscar nomination. His character appears to be simple, but is revealed to be complex, with demons and resentments that have haunted him for a lifetime. Dern should be ever grateful to Payne and Nelson for handing him such a wonderful role, especially at this point in his life. He’s 77.

84-year-old June Squibb brings spunk to her role as the wife who has endured much during her marriage to Woody. She should also be mentioned in awards conversations.

Nebraska is engaging on many levels, but mainly for capturing true human emotion. I highly recommend you see this film and, if they’re still around, take your parents and grandparents.

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Philomena

Two things I wanted to do after seeing Philomena: I wanted to drink a Guinness. And I wanted to punch a nun.

Philomena (Judi Dench) is an elderly lady in the UK who has always wondered about the child she bore out of wedlock in the early 1950’s. Her memories include a fling with a boy, a pregnancy lived out in secrecy in a convent and hard labor to repay the convent for its services. The film’s true story is set in the early 2000’s, when the son would be about 50 years old.

Martin Sixsmith (Steve Coogan) is an out-of-work British journalist who offers to help Philomena locate her son, in exchange for her allowing him to tell her story. He’s a jaded media type while Philomena is a generally upbeat woman, despite the lifelong pain she has suffered due to losing her son. They make an interesting duo.

Their search takes them to the convent in Ireland where only minimal information is forthcoming. Philomena flashes back to the one hour each day she was given to bond with her son. She then recalls the anguish of seeing a wealthy family take her son away for adoption when he was 3.

Eventually their quest takes them to the United States where answers are found and Philomena gets some closure. There are no spoilers in this review, but Martin’s affinity for Guinness provides a clue to the puzzle’s ultimate solution. And the nuns in the convent are presented as particularly unlikeable. (If you’ve ever encountered an unpleasant nun, maybe in school, wait til you see these women!)

The story is entertaining and offers a few surprising turns and emotional moments. Coogan, in addition to providing a strong counterpoint to Dench, co-wrote the script.

Judi Dench is excellent as usual. She is lively, energetic and occasionally funny. Her onscreen charm makes Philomena a movie for grownup audiences to enjoy and savor.

(Note: Philomena was initially rated R because it has two occurrences of the f-word. After an appeal to the MPAA, it has now been rated PG-13.)

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The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire everything is amped up. Everything is more, compared to 2012’s The Hunger Games.

Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) is more skillful, more passionate, more political, more focused. Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson) is more mature, more confident, more clever. President Snow (Donald Sutherland) is more calculating and more concerned about the power and influence Katniss and Peeta are able to command.

After emerging as co-victors of the Hunger Games, the pair are presented to the nation of Panem as a romantic couple. They are heroes. Snow wants them to use their personal appearance tour to trump up support for his political system. When that backfires, he and advisor Plutarch Heavensbee (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) hatch a plan to kill them off: a new Hunger Games featuring previous winners.

As for the actual kill-or-be-killed game, the competition again closely resembles TV’s Survivor. The game is closely monitored and every element is subject to being reset and reordered. The events of THG:CF deliver a satisfying outcome but leave much unresolved. This film, of course, is designed to set up the next two films.

Two over-the-top characters are even more outrageous in THG:CF. Effie Trinket (Elizabeth Banks) wears more eye makeup and her costumes are more ridiculous. Caesar Flickerman (Stanley Tucci) as host of the Hunger Games TV show is smarmier this time around. He almost seems in his announcing style to be channeling Michael “Let’s get ready to rumble!” Buffer.

Director Francis Lawrence, whose credits include Constantine, I Am Legend and Water For Elephants, brings amazing visuals and near perfect pacing. Happily, he did not feel compelled to resort to 3D.

It was wonderful at last year’s MTV Movie Awards to hear The Hunger Games actors thank novelist Susan Collins for providing the story that has fascinated millions of readers and moviegoers. Her narrative, her characters and her vision of Panem society are entertaining and thoughtful. I can’t wait for installments 3 and 4.

 

 

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Dallas Buyers Club

Dallas Buyers Club lives up to the buzz it has generated. Along with the one standout performance that’s been hailed in blurbs galore, there are a couple more that are impressive. The fact that this movie is inspired by true events in the life of a real person adds to its impact.

Ron Woodroof (Mathew McConaughey) is a typical mid-1980’s Texas redneck. He’s a blue- collar worker who lives a hedonistic lifestyle off the job. That includes drugs, booze, strip clubs and casual sex. Although he is straight, he contracts AIDS which, in this time period, is still new and baffling to the medical/pharma community and frightening to everyone.

Upon being told his condition is terminal, he does research and reads about AZT, which is not yet legally available pending tests and FDA approval. Upon procuring AZT and other drugs for himself, he finds there’s a market for these drugs among other AIDS victims.

He forms a “buyers club,” where those who pay a $400/fee can help themselves to whatever meds he has available. To work around existing regulations, such clubs prospered in several cities in the 80’s.

Dallas Buyers Club presents Woodroof as a bit of a hero, one who goes to extreme lengths to obtain medications for AIDS victims, most of whom are gay. But Woodroof’s basic motivation is keeping himself alive.

When an actor gains or loses a significant amount of weight for a role, it generally garners attention. (Think DeNiro, Hanks, Zellwegger, Bale and others.) When this change is accompanied by a great performance, the effect is amplified. McConaughey’s work in DBC is outstanding.

During one hospital stay, Woodroof meets Rayon (an unrecognizable Jared Leto), a cross-dressing gay drug addict. His performance is eye-opening.

Dr. Eve Saks (Jennifer Garner) is sympathetic to Woodroof’s cause, despite his upset at doctors and the FDA. Garner shows that she, too, like McConaughey, can handle the serious stuff.

Those of us who were around in the 80’s recall the developing AIDS epidemic, aka the “gay disease.” That’s when dentists started using rubber gloves, lest they be exposed to tainted blood.

I lived in Dallas in 1984-85. I worked with a gay newsman at my radio station. He moved to Miami a few years later where he died of AIDS. I wonder if he ever knew Ron Woodroof or someone like him.

McConaughey has to be considered for an Oscar nomination. Added to his work in Mud earlier this year, 2013 has been a year of redemption for him.

Dallas Buyers Club is rated R for many reasons, including sex, language, drug use, etc.

 

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Thor: The Dark World

Thor: The Dark World is a big, loud live-action version of a cartoon version of a comic book story. The effects are good, the surprises are enjoyable and the comic relief is so random that some hardcore fanboys may get upset.

Chris Hemsworth is a better Thor this time than he was two-and-a-half years ago. He’s less stiff and more comfortable doing all those Thorian things he does.

As Thor jumps back and forth between his fantasy realm and our good ol’ ordinary modern Earth, bad guys who existed before time began (not sure how they managed that trick) plot to destroy Asgard. To defeat them, he calls upon his weasel brother Loki (Tom Hiddleston), even though Thor knows he can’t really trust him.

Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), Thor’s earthly love, is a walking billboard for girlish pursuits of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), long thought to be the domain of males. Her chum Darcy is played by Kat Dennings, who keeps ‘em covered up in TTDW. You’ll have to watch “2 Broke Girls” to get that Kat fan service.

They come to the rescue of eccentric science guy Erik Selvig (Stellan Skarsgard) who they spot on TV being arrested for walking around naked at Stonehenge. He, like everyone in the cast, is waiting for the “convergence” when, supposedly, many things will hit the fan. He generates a good number of TTDW’s chuckles and sets up Stan Lee’s cameo line. Selvig also has a hand in the film’s climax.

After Thor fights these wicked and particularly ugly dark world rivals in parts unknown (actually Iceland, on whose stark terrain battles were filmed), they follow him to modern day London to be clobbered again with that mighty hammer.

Thor: The Dark World is not a perfect movie. But it has a near perfect vibe for this story and this Marvel superhero. It goes without saying (but I’ll say it anyway), don’t leave until the screen goes dark and the theater staff comes in to clean up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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