“Nebraska” is packed with hilarious material, but it’s all rooted in a brutally candid presentation of old age, resulting in a unique and especially thoughtful union of quirky comedy and honesty.
Woody Grant (Bruce Dern) is convinced that he won a million dollars. His son, David (Will Forte), points out the obvious – that the letter is nothing more than a scam – but Woody insists on traveling from Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect his winnings. In an effort to keep his father happy and mentally sound, David hops in his Subaru to take his father on the 750-mile trip, much to his mother’s (June Squibb) chagrin.
Considering the abundance of bogus big money sweepstakes, the inciting incident serves as an ideal starting point. Like David, you know the operation is a cheat, but, at the same time, seeing, “You’ve just won $1,000,000,” in black and white can make your heart skip a beat, granting access to both characters.
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Watching a man try to survive a mid-sea disaster is compelling, but watching a man try to survive a mid-sea disaster in an effort to live for something would have been exponentially more compelling.
Time travel in “About Time” functions as highly entertaining and amusing component, but it’s also embedded in a barrage of tremendously honest and relatable drama that makes it a deeply affecting experience worth taking with you well after the credits roll.
“Inside Llewyn Davis” features a remarkable lead performance and impassioned journey, but the character’s destructive habits and off-putting attitude can make the experience deflating and unfulfilling.
“Captain Phillips” is the ultimate true tragedy-to-film adaptation. Rather than ride the “wow, this really happened” wave to an explosive finish, Paul Greengrass’ representation is so absorbing in and of itself, you won’t have an ounce of energy left for that until well after.
Typically a found footage film means one person just happens to be recording during a phenomenon and just so happens to be committed enough to risk his or her life to keep recording in order to tell the story from beginning to end in a format that just so happens to match a standard screenplay structure. Kudos to director Barry Levinson and writer Michael Wallach for making a movie that actually attempts to compile a more realistic version of found footage, but, in the end, doing so at the expense of a proper narrative and engaging characters just isn’t worth it.
Piscine lives with his brother and parents in Pondicherry, India. When he isn’t spending time with the animals at his family-owned zoo, an inquisitive Pi is off exploring different faiths of which he adopts three. When Pi makes an attempt at befriending the zoo’s tiger, Richard Parker, his father steps in to teach him a rather harsh lesson, one that rattles his beliefs and curiosity.
Ever since the release of the film’s trailer, it’s been quite apparent that The Skin I Live In doesn’t play by the industry’s standard rules of story telling. While this is generally a stellar characteristic in terms of innovation, it also runs the risk of, well, being confusing. The Skin I Live In isn’t too tough to follow, but the storyline does delve into some elements particularly deeply and glosses over others, and while this recipe might work for some, for others it could keep the piece from having the intended effect.
Sure it’s fun to see fugitives make daring escapes, characters have overemotional breakdowns and others dodge a barrage of bullets, but if you’re looking for something along those lines that’s far more realistic, writer-director Sean Durkin does a notable job taking the standard elements of your average psychological thriller, compressing them and letting Elizabeth Olsen bring the remainder to life. The result is Martha Marcy May Marlene and it’s a feature film that packs far more tension and emotion than any shoot ‘em up, mind game action flick out there.
As someone who’s generally not a Lars von Trier fan, I feel compelled to encourage everyone to toss aside your preconceptions and inhibitions and give Melancholia a shot. No, it’s still not your standard, straightforward Hollywood fare, but that’s what makes it such a unique and genuinely special experience and, after chatting with stars Kirsten Dunst, Alexander Skarsgård and Charlotte Gainsbourg, it seems as though von Trier’s unique way of working is what made creating Melancholia such a genuinely special experience for them.