5X2 - R

It's a love story told backwards. About an average mid-thirties couple and their marriage. It starts with their divorce and moves down to the moment they fell in love.

It was superb, seeing this told backwards. Seeing how severed relationships can become, how they'll eventually grow into something malignant, no matter how people are doing their best, no matter how much they love each other.

And how people are so complex, that they never fall into what you expect of them, how lives are never neat as you want them to, feelings aren't something you can control, behaviours sometimes go unexplained, that sometimes people are simply that. Strange, odd, just people.

There's several examples of this throughout this film. After they get their divorce settled, they check into a hotel to have sex. And she ends up not wanting. And he ends up raping her. And, as she's leaving, he asks her if they should give it another go.

Of how, when they entertain his gay brother and his young, slutty boyfriend, the husband admits to have engaged in an orgy, with both men and women, while his wife encouraged and watched him, but never joined.

When she has their baby, how he's not up to visiting her in the hospital, and just stands outside, smoking, not being able to visit or talk to her, making up excuses for bad traffic and afterwards, while he stays in the car at night, suddenly calling her to tell her he loves her.

Or when, in their wedding night, the husband falls asleep and the wife goes outside and meets a stranger, with whom she has sex, returning to her room in the morning, holding her husband and telling him how much she loves him, while he didn't even notice she was gone all night, their wedding night. Just before seeing how much in love they seemed to be in their wedding ceremony, how lustful even, how smitten for one another, how truly happy.

Strange how people are, how people react, what people do, with no proper explanation, other than the fact that they are just people, leading their ordinary lives the best they can, and how somehow, even themselves can't understand what they're doing, why they do it, as if there's a deep, hidden side to them that makes them be what they are and not what they're supposed to be.

Wedding Crashers - R

Wedding Crashers is a fun comedy that works simply because the filmmakers know what to do with what they've got. The great humor of Wedding Crashers is not found in the cleverness of its script or the creativity of its story, but rather in its lead actors. Had anyone but Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn been the leads, this movie would have tanked. They are both famous for that congenial charisma that so many people find humorous – the type that makes them come off as the fun buddies that we all wish we could call up on a Friday night. Director David Dobkin must know this, because he gives Wilson and Vaughn plenty of scenes to show off the qualities that have made them two of America's funniest and most likable stars.

To fulfill the perfect cast, Rachel McAdams and Christopher Walken fill in the necessary roles. McAdams again reminds us why she has become so popular in the past year, glowing with her vibrant smile and charm that interact perfectly with every character on screen, especially Wilson's. Christopher Walken, among his many extraordinary traits, is famous for his dry, sarcastic sense of humor – revealed through his one of a kind voice. He gets a chance not only to earn some laughs in a way that only he can do, but also to play the role of the amiable father figure with the great advice.

Make no mistake, though – underneath this film's main selling point of a couple of funny guys going around and crashing weddings to sleep with girls (an idea that is just about concluded within the first 15 minutes) – is a sappy, conventional chick flick. I use that term carefully though, because Wedding Crashers never actually falls victim to the typical stereotypes of your average chick flick. It avoids them because of its great cast and the chemistry they all share on screen – which can appeal to just about anyone who enjoys a good laugh. It conceals the fact that the script is probably one of the worst excuses for a comedy within the past year. What's great is that we never have to look that far – because the characters all seem to be enjoying themselves too much, and they make the film just as enjoyable to watch.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou - R

Where to start? Pretentious? Another Hollywood movie trying to be European in its flavor? An incoherent plot with no real direction? Yes, the above is all true. But somehow it works, and I'm not quite sure why.

The cast of Life Aquatic is stellar to say the least. A brilliant turn by Murray who is just a dead-cert in everything he touches; Owen Wilson proving that he isn't just a comedy slash action hero and supporting names such as Cate Blanchet, Jeff Goldblum, Michael Gambon, Angelica Huston and Willem Defoe. This is a movie that has no lack of star power.

The Life Aquatic is an eclectic movie by design, that follows Oceanographer Steve Zissou (Murray) on his personal and professional revenge mission to hunt the fabled Jaguar Shark that took his friend during the filming of a documentary. Kingston Ned Plimpton (Owen Wilson) is a Kentucky Co-pilot that may be Zissou's son or might not be, who joins Zissou and his crew on the mission to kill the shark and make a documentary that will receive critical acclaim; something that is a 12 year memory for Team Zissou.

As I watched the movie I couldn't pin it. I couldn't decide quite if what I was watching was rubbish or great. There were points when I almost felt like I was wasting my time and points where I was enjoying the incoherent ride this story basically is, quite a bit. This movie isn't a straight comedy, thats for sure. I didn't laugh out loud once, I smiled on more than one occasion but this isn't a movie that will have you reeling with laughter. That said, Murray plays his role very well and is very funny, if not laugh out loud so.

I also have to compliment this movie with a great soundtrack and bringing me to the attention of Seu Jorges who is an incredible talent who literally goes through the entire movie performing David Bowie songs in Portuguese. This guy is quite, quite brilliant and his performance of Queen Bitch during the credits was just sheer quality. OK, I'm a huge Bowie fan but this guy is great.

The Life Aquatic is just one of those movies. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was a brilliant movie because it wasn't, really. What it is despite the opening comments is "refreshing". And yes, it's entertaining. This is a film that I doubt many will be apathetic about. You're either going to go for it or despise it.

Angelo

Malena - R

A very touching movie about a boy's first love, and first loves never end. Renato is a boy in Sicily, Italy. Around the time of World War II he was 12 and a half years old, struggling to become a man and get recognition from his peers. He fell in love with Malena, a very fascinating woman, at first sight. But alas, she was married. And all he could do was to follow her wherever she went; and fantasizing about her.

News came that Malena's husband died in the war, and thus leaving her a widow. Now she had to face the world alone, and the world is not easy for a pretty widow. The men in town lusted after her, and the women was jealous of her beauty. At last she had to leave her town wounded and alone. But Renato gathered his courage and helped her; though anonymously.

This movie ended with a surprise, and a nice surprise at that. Not necessarily a happy ending, but not a sad ending either. More like a real ending, although this is not a real story. Director Giuseppe Tornatore combined the view of destroyed Sicily with wonderful shore panorama, and the result is gorgeous. This film will leave you contemplating about human nature, that is, two of the seven deadly sins: Lust and Envy.

Angelo

Flightplan - PG 13

Jodie Foster is an aeronautical engineer based in Berlin. She lives there with her husband and daughter, and when he dies from an apparent suicide leap from the roof of their apartment house, she is left to bring his body back to the US, accompanied by their daughter. The build up of suspense is quite good at the beginning of the film, the airline delay, having the horrible experience that she may have lost the daughter in the airport, boarding, then the de-icing of the plane, all little touches to get the viewer on edge. Once they're airborne, they switch seats to get a row to themselves and sleep. Waking up three hours later, Jodie finds her daughter missing. Ever more frantic, she searches the plane, finally getting the captain involved, but things start to come a little undone for her when the crew tell her there's no record of her daughter on the manifest. It's let out that her husband has recently died, she's on anti-depressants, and possibly she's imagining the whole thing about being with her daughter. I won't tell any more, but the spoilers are many: As someone else said, why was the girl allowed on a plane without a boarding pass going through the machine for the passenger manifest? Why steal the girl in the first place? What was the point? How did they reach into Foster's pocket and steal the daughter's boarding pass without her waking up? Why have real explosive involved anyway, if the intent was merely extortion, fake stuff would have done the job just as well. Was the air-marshall real or was he a fake, if fake, how did he get credentials that fooled the airline? Are we seriously to believe that they'd kill Foster's husband just so they could plant explosives in his casket? And if they did, why choose an aeronautical engineer's spouse - someone who knows the plane inside out - why not choose Janet Schmo and her husband Joe?

I came out of the movie calling "bullshit".

Angelo

The Beautiful Country - R

While we are engaged in yet another intrusive ill-advised war, the time is right for the release of a story that reminds us of the lingering malignant consequences of the equally intrusive war in Vietnam. For those who falsely believe that a war is over with the signing of a declaration and the evacuation of troops this magnificently poignant film will be an eye opener. And for those who are aware of the broken families and bitter scars of war marking those who fought on both sides, the story will find a different response - one of memory of pain, regret, and wonder at the tale of just one survivor.

Binh (Damien Nguyen) is a half-breed, his mother a Vietnamese and his father an American soldier, and as such is has no country: he doesn't belong and lives as an outcast. His struggle for life leads to his departing his village in Vietnam for Saigon where he reconnects with his estranged mother Mai (Thi Kim Xuan Chau), and his very young half brother Tam (Dang Quoc Thinh Tran), who works as a servant in an abusive wealthy Vietnamese household. The reunion is touching and Binh joins his mother on the staff as a servant. An unfortunate accident occurs forcing Binh to flee to America, his young brother Tam accompanying him at Mai's insistence: Mai sees America as the beautiful country where her sons will find their father in Houston, Texas and have a new life.

The bulk of the film is the treacherous journey of Binh and Tam along with Ling (Ling Bai), a Chinese girl who befriends them. They survive a detention camp in Malaysia, a doomed boat trip, and a long journey aboard a filthy human trafficking ship whose Captain Oh (Tim Roth) monitors their survival (except for Tam who succumbs to fever) and ultimately releases them into the waters along New York. Binh and Ling survive in Chinatown in New York in the most menial of jobs, again surviving abuse in the land of promise. Eventually Binh travels to Texas for a reunion with his biological father (Nick Nolte) and even that reunion is marked by the permanent scars the war has left on the survivors.

Through all of the incomprehensible hardships Binh is marked with a spirit of survival that pays homage to the human soul's ability to sustain life through hope. The message is powerful and for once is not cosmetically altered by the writers or the director or the fine cast. Damien Nguyen and Ling Bai are outstanding and the cameo roles are all superb. This is an epic film, not a pretty one, but a film about the pity of war, one that pleads the case against war in simply recalling the disastrous after effects that many choose to forget. And it is a story of the triumph of the human spirit. If we are to ever understand the pity of war and the inhumanity of war, we must be aware of the consequence.

Broken Flowers - R

This is one of those movies where I found it to help greatly to re-watch the first scene. Before we see anything, we hear the sounds of an old-fashioned typewriter, we later find out was the typing of a letter to the lead character, Don Johnston (Bill Murray). Then we follow the pink letter without return address being mailed, judging from the coat sleeve and gloves probably a female, picked up by the postman, trucked to the distribution center, then flown by jet to New York state where Johnston lives. Then, we see a mail carrier walk up to this beautiful, expensive house with two expensive cars in the driveway, and deposit the mail, including the pink envelope, into his door mail slot. Johnson, a life-long Don Juan, has made his considerable wealth in "computers" and now apparently is retired to a very boring life, and his current girlfriend is leaving. he exhibits a very high degree of apathy.

The pink letter, unsigned, is the catalyst for the whole movie. The letter states that Johnston has a son by a woman he had a relationship with 20 years ago, and this enterprising young man has decided to find out who is father is. His neighbor and friend Winston (Jeffrey Wright), an amateur sleuth, thinks Johnston should not stand by idly, waiting for someone to show up. Instead he has Johnston make a list of all the flames he had 20 years earlier, Winston finds out where they live, and plans an itinerary for him to show up and find out which one might have the son.

Even though Johnston appears apathetic about everything around him, this notion of having a son sparks an interest in his otherwise very dull life. Even though he absolutely tells Winston he will not do this, he sets out on his trek.

So, the movie is about former Don Juan, Don Johnston, trying to contact his old girlfriends and deal with the inevitable surprises along the way. The movie is rated "R" for only one reason, a short scene 38 minutes into the DVD where cute Lolita (20 year old Alexis Dziena) walks into the living room stark naked while talking on the phone, while Johnston waits for her mother, his former girlfriend Laura (Sharon Stone).

SPOILERS. As Johnston finally finds his way home, with a black eye from an angry husband, he sees this young man in his town, traveling, and begins to think it may be his son looking for him. He explains that he is not a cop, and not gay, just wants to offer to buy him something to eat. Which he does. But when Johnston begins to talk of him possibly being his son, the boy runs away. Johnston never finds out if the letter was a hoax of not, but is energized with the thought that he may have a son somewhere, now that he is older and tired of being a Don Juan.

2046 - R

I'll be honest, the main reason I watched 2046 was the actresses. Ziyi Zhang and Faye Wong in particular, though Tony Leung is also very good. I have to say that watching those actresses (and Tony Leung) was the only really enjoyable aspect about it.

2046 is a movie about a man who's trying to recover from having lost his One True Love. Despite finding other women, some of whom are hopelessly in love with him, he can't return their love because he's only living for the woman he once lost. So essentially, he's just going through the motions, pretending to have meaningful relationships but in fact being over and done with true love. Not a very happy or constructive situation, you'll agree. To me it was all a bit pointless. It was a long, slow-moving film, with only a few points of real interest (seeing Faye Wong as an android with inhumanly perfect skin was interesting). It wasn't any kind of sci-fi movie, either, for the few sci-fi elements were simply metaphors for something else.

The point of the movie has something to do with timing; that true love only occurs at the right time and place, which is difficult and very accidental to find oneself in. While this may be a good and meritable point, in my opinion it doesn't have to be that way. People can be more open to each other, so that everything doesn't have to depend on happenstance. Philosophically, I remain unimpressed with this movie, and cannot declare myself in agreement with its statements.

Still, it was clearly a well-produced, honest and highly emotional piece of movie-making, with amazing performances by especially Tony Leung and Ziyi Zhang, the latter of which has a more adult and mature role here than anything else I've seen her in.

A solid and substantial piece of work, but nothing I can imagine sitting through a second time.