Posts Tagged ‘Jason Bateman’
Sunday, February 7th, 2010
Review:
George Clooney lives in the air - on planes and in airports. 322 days a year, he is on the really high road (sorry for that horrible joke) in his job of professional employment terminator, i.e. he fires people and helps them cope with the situation by painting it in bright colours as a chance for a better life. And he is happy in that life of hotels and airports without any real human connections. Things change when he meets a woman he actually falls for while also encountering the enthusiasm of a young colleague fresh out of college, who invented firing over the internet. He takes her on a trip to learn the ropes while his life of solitude slowly dissolves. The film is often extremely funny while also dealing with a real dramatic problem (being laid off), but ultimately falls a little flat. It’s great fun to watch for the most part, but the end is hardly satisfying and feels disconnected and unreal.
Random Observations:
Up in the Air at the IMDb
This is the sixth of the ten Best Picture Oscar nominees (more about the Oscar nominations here) I’ve seen and I’m still rooting for one I haven’t seen - The Hurt Locker. The film is also nominated for Best Director (Jason Reitman), Best Adapted Screenplay (Reitman and Sheldon Turner), Best Actor (Clooney) and Best Supporting Actress for both Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Out of those, Clooney’s performance and Reitman’s direction are the most deserving winners, but both are unlike to walk away with the Oscar exactly one month from now.
Because there was an unusually long queue at the ticket counter, I actually missed the first few minutes of the film, something which I absolutely hate, and feel somewhat reluctant about the validity of my critique.
For the most part, the film worked as a realistic tale of human life, but the fact that somebody whose company fires people for other companies thinks that it might be a good idea to do so over video-chat, was too contrived and repeatedly took me out of the movie.
Tags: 2009, American Film, Amy Morton, Anna Kendrick, book adaptation, Chris Lowell, Comedy, Danny McBride, Drama, english, George Clooney, J.K. Simmons, Jason Bateman, Jason Reitman, Melanie Lynskey, minute movie review, movie review, Movies, Oscar, roamnce, Sam Elliott, Sheldon Turner, Steve Eastin, The Hurt Locker, Up in the Air, Vera Farmiga, Zach Galifianakis
Posted in Minute Movie Reviews, Movie Reviews, Movies | No Comments »
Saturday, June 20th, 2009
Review:
A journalist and a blogger for the respected Washington Globe uncover a conspiracy with the help of the politician which it tries to bring down, who just so happens to be an old friend of the journalist. The film is a pretty clear-cut political/journalistic thriller with all the usual twists and turns. But, refreshingly, instead of a clear moral message it focuses on the importance of journalism and the search for truth. Apart from that, though, there is nothing terribly original about it, making it solid entertainment that is easily forgotten.
Random Observations:
State of Play at the IMDb
The movie is based on a BBC mini-series of the same name.
The lead role of the film is played by Russel Crowe and despite my intense dislike of him both as a person and an actor, I didn’t really mind him all that much in this.
The following will reveal the end of the film, so if you haven’t seen it yet and plan to, you might want to skip this paragraph: I’m not sure whether the final twist was really necessary. Sure, it added a lot of moral ambiguity but in my opinion it would have been much more effective had it happened after the story was printed and the scene with the soldier was just ridiculous and the movie could have done well without it.
In general, the whole plot was a bit too complicated and interwoven to both make sense and be completely believable.
I read that in the mini-series, there was a car chase. Why was there no car chase in the movie? I demand a car chase! Every movie is made better by a bitchin’ car chase.
I never realized how much Ben Affleck sounds like his younger brother Casey. And yes, I put it that way deliberately.
The journalist has a picture of the reporters from the Watergate investigation in his cubicle.
The production company on the film was a GmbH & Co. KG, meaning that it was, for lack of a better word, incorporated in Germany. The film was produced and shot entirely in the United States. Isn’t it great how tax evasion has made films international?
Tags: 2009, American Film, based on tv show, Ben Affleck, Billy Ray, Casey Affleck, Drama, english, Harry Lennix, Helen Mirren, Jason Bateman, Jeff Daniels, Kevin Macdonald, Matthew Michael Carnahan, Michael Berresse, minute movie review, movie review, Movies, Paul Abbott, Rachel McAdams, Robin Wright Penn, Russel Crowe, State of Play, Thriller, Tony Gilroy, Watergate
Posted in Minute Movie Reviews, Movie Reviews, Movies | No Comments »
Saturday, July 12th, 2008
Review:
Something an idea just isn’t enough. The idea behind Hancock is quite good - a superhero that is a complete asshole and drunk. Sadly, the execution of this idea is beyond awful. Apart from the first few minutes and one truly unexpected plot twist, the movie is painful to watch. Will Smith is not very convincing playing a not-quite-so-nice-guy, the special effects are straight out of the 1980s and the overall story is silly and predictable. The film features about two funny lines, the before mentioned plot twist and 90 wasted minutes. Will it be the end of Smith’s status as the last true movie star?
Random Observations:
Hancock at imdb.com
The production budget is supposed to be $150 million. Obviously, Smith got about 50% of that. Still, the special effects, especially when he is flying, look completely ridiculous. The mixture of CGI and greenscreen filmed images is painfully obvious.
I usually really like Jason Bateman, but in this film he was just as bad as everyone else.
This film absolutely lacked a villain. Part of the fun of superhero stories is seeing them take on somebody who is equally clever/strong/super. A guy with one arm isn’t much of a competition.
This is actually an original script, not based on any previous work such as a comic book.
Tags: 2008, action movie, American Film, Charlize Theron, Comedy, comic book movie, Drama, english, fantasy movie, Hancock, Jason Bateman, minute movie review, movie review, Movies, Peter Berg, Thriller, Will Smith
Posted in Minute Movie Reviews, Movie Reviews, Movies | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 25th, 2008
Review:
Juno is a pretty typical American teenager - and also pregnant. She decides to deliver the baby and look for a family that will adopt it. The film tells the story of that year in her life, seldom moving into overly dramatic territory and instead focusing on the comedic aspects of it, yet without ever getting silly. Ellen Page in the lead role carries the movie (once more) and is helped along by a good supporting cast, set to the first soundtrack in this decade to sell independently well. An often funny and engaging film, Juno delivers what it promises: fun. And also a baby.
Random Observations:
Juno at imdb.com
Screenwriter Diablo Cody, a former exotic dancer (aka stripper), won an Oscar for the screenplay. I don’t really know for what, since in reality people occasionally use the normal words for things instead of just lining up metaphors; quirky dialogue alone is just lazy writing, not an accomplishment. If you want to really see a well-written film, watch “Lars and the Real Girl“.
Having “hip” and “independent” musicians do the soundtrack for a film is “the” thing right now, but in general it is preferable to actually use someone who can “sing”.
This is the 100th movie review published here - in just under 5 months.
Tags: 2007, Allison Janney, American Film, award season, Canadian Film, Comedy, Diablo Cody, Drama, Ellen Page, english, J.K. Simmons, Jason Bateman, Jason Reitman, Jennifer Garner, Juno, Lars and the Real Girl, Michael Cera, minute movie review, movie review, Movies, Olivia Thirlby, Oscar
Posted in Minute Movie Reviews, Movie Reviews, Movies | No Comments »
Wednesday, January 9th, 2008
For a long time, I have been a reader of the website of the A.V. Club. As far as popular culture is concerned, there is no site on the great world wide interweb that I like more. And now for the third year running, they have asked readers to submit their Top Five Movies of the past year, which I of course dutifully did. I also wrote some short comments about those movies and since I feel disinclined to just let them get lost in the internetz and I also like reusing things to make it appear that I am creative or something like that, they are now also posted here. So here are my personal favourite movies of 2007:
1. Atonement
In a wonderful adaptation of a brilliant novel, Joe Wright almost manages to tell a better story than Ian McEwan. Beautifully shot and excellently acted (especially by Saoirse Ronan), the movie is a true gem. Combined with the great story and the surprisingly fitting soundtrack/score, this is easily the best film I’ve seen in 2007.
2. Gone Baby Gone
Ben Affleck should never have tried acting. He belongs behind the camera and he demonstrates it with his directorial debut. A good movie is made great by the twist at the end that makes a typical thriller into a morality tale, which makes you wonder what you would have done.
3. The Simpsons Movie
After 18 years, the Simpsons moved to the big screen and they did so in a fashion that surprised everybody. For 90 minutes, this movie is just pure brilliant entertainment. Maybe there were more meaningful movies in 2007, but there wasn’t a funnier one.
4. The Darjeeling Limited
Wes Anderson makes another movie that is so typically Wes Anderson that after 10 minutes you start to wonder whether he can only make one kind of movie. But you’ll soon stop, because the typically melodramatic comedy of Anderson, combined with beautiful imagery, great acting and music leaves you wanting more. It’s not The Royal Tenenbaums, but it’s still a brilliant movie.
5. Juno
I haven’t actually seen Juno, because it hasn’t yet been released in the backwater country where I live (it’s called Germany). But what I’ve heard is so great, that I’m sure I will love this movie. People might say that it was Ellen Page’s breakthrough performance, but everybody who has seen her in Hard Candy knows that she knows what she is doing.
I’d love to say something about how great a year 2007 was, but due to the fact that studios insist on releasing movies months later in Germany, I haven’t yet seen many hyped movies, such as There Will Be Blood or No Country for Old Men. But considering that I can’t remember the last time I was looking forward to movies that are released here in February, 2007 must have been a great year.
Tags: 2007, Adrien Brody, Anjelica Huston, Atonement, Ben Affleck, Bill Murray, Casey Affleck, Diablo Cody, Ellen Page, english, Gone Baby Gone, Hard Candy, Ian McEwan, James McAvoy, Jason Bateman, Jason Reitman, Jason Schwartzman, Jennifer Garner, Joe Wright, Juno, Keira Knightley, lists, Matt Groening, Michael Cera, Michelle Monaghan, Movies, Natalie Portman, No Country for Old Men, Owen Wilson, Romola Garai, Saoirse Ronan, The Darjeeling Limited, The Simpsons, There Will Be Blood, Vanessa Redgrave, Wes Anderson
Posted in Movies, Top Lists | 3 Comments »
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