2009 was a good year for _____ (fill in the blank). Here’s an overview from my perspective, which is a very important one.

Best Films of 2009

Up in the Air

I’ve seen it twice, and plan to go again. An absolutely fantastic film from Jason Reitman about the human condition and the ways in which we are our worst enemies. Sometimes heartwrenching and often funny, it’s exactly the kind of movie I needed to see after a year of movies where there was no comfort to be had. A flawed character recognizes his flaws, pays the consequences for them, and begins to change. Expertly written, directed, and especially acted. George Clooney plays George Clooney, and it’s the best I’ve ever seen him. Vera Farmiga is also fantastic, but Anna Kendrick just blew me away. I hadn’t seen her in anything previous to this, but she really proved herself. Anyone who steals the scenes from Clooney is one to watch out for.
For Your Consideration: Up in the Air (Best Picture), George Clooney (Best Actor), Vera Farmiga (Best Supporting Actress), Anna Kendrick (Best Supporting Actress, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director (Jason Reitman)

Precious

I saw Precious by myself, which is the way I’ve instructed everyone else to see it. It’s absolutely heartbreaking. It made me angry, hurt, frustrated, and in the end, very very sad. It does what I believe every Lifetime movie sets out to, and that is appeal to the human emotion. However, what Precious does better than any other movie this year, is do this genuinely. It never felt cheap or contrived, and I appreciated that. The acting is superb across the board. Special shout-out to Mariah Carey, who, for fifteen minutes, was brilliant in this film.
For Your Consideration: Best Picture (Precious), Best Actress (Gabourey Sibide), Best Supporting Actress (Mo’Nique), Best Director (Lee Daniels)

The Road

For me, a fantastic adaptation of a book I love very much. McCarthy is a genius in my eyes, and I really love what the film made of the text. I’ve been surprised this awards season to see The Road go by almost unrecognized. It was released at the right time, had the star quality- don’t know where the promotion went wrong. Either way, I really enjoyed the film. It’s one of the best father-son love stories around, IMO. Made me bawl, anyway.
For Your Consideration: Best Picture (The Road), Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Cinematography

Jennifer’s Body

An interesting choice perhaps. Certainly not being considered by the Academy this season, but I have no shame in saying that this was one of my favorite movies of 2009. I mean, I loved it. I might say that, out of all of these films, it’s the one I’d watch over and over again and enjoy all the same. I sort of love left-of-center black comedy horror films (see Zombieland below) and this, for me, sets the bar. Despite what anyone says, I think Diablo Cody is brilliantly witty and writes the funniest dialogue you’ll hear in movies these days. It comes out next Tuesday. I’ll buy it. I never do that!
For Your Direction: Best Original Screenplay

Sunshine Cleaning

Why this movie hasn’t been recognized at all is beyond me. I really believe it was one of the best films 2009 had to offer. I don’t see why Little Miss Sunshine was indie enough to gain momentum but this wasn’t. Let’s just start off with Amy Adams and Emily Blunt. I mean, COME ON. Dream sisters. I love them both, and thought they were both brilliant in this film. These were the best performances I’d seen them both give. (Sidenote- Amy Adams gets recognition for Julie and Julia and not this? WTF?) Alan Arkin also cracked me up. I guess what I love about this movie most is that, despite a bizarre plot, it never felt anything but realistic. I related to this family with ease, and felt that anyone could. Funny, touching, and very enjoyable.
For Your Consideration: Best Picture (Sunshine Cleaning), Best Actress (Emily Blunt), Best Actress (Amy Adams), Best Original Screenplay

Zombieland

Really! Yes, really. Fucking hilarious, and the best two hours I’ve had in a theater in forever. Tons of people were dressed up, the theater was sold out- it was SO fun. I really think this film will develop a pretty heavy cult following in the future. It’s actually quite funny, and sometimes even a bit touching, too. The gore was awesome, too. I always appreciate well-done gore. I love that the film knows its place while breaking the rules of the zombie subgenre the whole time. Just because there’s blood and brains, Zombieland doesn’t sacrifice originality or wit.
For Your Consideration: Just see it, that’s all. No awards.

Notable Mentions

• (500) Days of Summer
• The Proposal
• I Love You, Man
• Capitalism: A Love Story
• Where The Wild Things Are
• Love Happens

Film Contenders That I Haven’t Seen, And Therefore Didn’t Factor Into This List

• A Single Man
• Crazy Heart
• Nine
• The Hurt Locker
• An Education
• Invictus
• Inglorious Basterds

——-

BONUS FEATURES:
The WORST of 2009

Brothers

(I don’t know how they made this movie as awful as it was, but A+ if that was the intention. Never seen so many military family stereotypes in one film before. The acting was atrocious, the writing was juvenile, and it was forty-five minutes too long.)

Couples Retreat

(If I laughed once, it was out of pity. A shitfest of cinematic hell, and that’s kind.)

Fame

(Megan Mullally couldn’t save this movie, and she can save anything. Truly painful.)

CLICK HERE TO VIEW

Meet the Rizzos, a family that might get along a lot better if only they could tell each other the truth. Dad Vince is the worst offender. But since the prison guard won’t even admit that poker night is in fact acting class, how’s he ever going to explain about his illegitimate son? His daughter works as a stripper when she’s supposed to be in college, while young Vinnie Jr has a secret sexual fetish that involves a 24-hour webcam and the family’s 300-pound neighbour. Vince’s wife Joyce is the family’s rock, but it’s been a year since she enjoyed intimacy with her husband, and it’s no surprise she thinks poker night spells A-F-F-A-I-R. When former prisoner Tony enters the Rizzos’ lives, Joyce begins to suspect that the handsome young Tony isn’t who Vince says he is. City Island is a funny, touching and smart family tale about the secrets of the past catching up with the lies of the present, and accepting that nobody’s perfect – least of all your loved ones.

Edward Scissorhands is a 1990 comedy-drama fantasy film directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp. The film tells the story of an artificial man named Edward, an unfinished creation, who has scissors for hands. Edward is taken in by a suburban family and falls in love with their teenage daughter Kim. Supporting roles are portrayed by Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall, Kathy Baker, Alan Arkin and Vincent Price.

Burton conceived the idea for Edward Scissorhands from his childhood upbringing in suburban Burbank, California. During pre-production of Beetlejuice, Caroline Thompson was hired to adapt Burton’s story into a screenplay, and the film began development at 20th Century Fox, after Warner Bros. passed on the project. Edward Scissorhands was then fast tracked after Burton’s success with Batman. Before Depp’s casting, the leading role of Edward had been connected to Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Robert Downey, Jr. and William Hurt, while the role of The Inventor was written specifically for Vincent Price.

The majority of filming took place in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida, which generated over $6 million for the local economy. Edward’s scissor hands were created and designed by Stan Winston. The film is also the fourth feature collaboration between Burton and film score composer Danny Elfman. Edward Scissorhands was released with positive feedback from critics, and was a financial success. The film received numerous nominations at the Academy Awards, British Academy Film Awards, Saturn Awards, as well as winning the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation. Both Burton and Elfman consider Edward Scissorhands their most personal and favorite work.

 Trivia:

• The houses used in the film were a real community in Florida, completely unchanged except for their garish exterior paint.
• This was Vincent Price’s last screen appearance and his last moment ever on screen is a death scene. He actually fainted on the set as it was filmed. Tim Burton decided the take was fine and kept it for the morbidity of it.
• The first draft of the film was written as a musical.
• Johnny Depp had to lose a reported 25 pounds for the role of Edward Scissorhands.
• Johnny Depp said only 169 words in this film.
• Director Trademark: [Tim Burton] [music] music by Danny Elfman
• The idea for the movie was inspired by a drawing Tim Burton had done when he was a teenager.
• For her role as the religious zealot Esmeralda, O-Lan Jones also arranged and actually played the organ music her character performs on-screen.
• Some of the topiary that Edward makes in the movie can be seen permanently at the New York City restaurant Tavern On the Green.
• When Edward goes to have his hands sharpened, the storefront was that of an actual hardware store called Crowder Brothers in Southgate Shopping Center. At the time of the filming, they did offer a sharpening service, and they did have a giant motorized Victorinox in the window.
• The Southgate Shopping Center is located in Lakeland, FL while the neighborhood was filmed at the Carpenter’s Run subdivision in Lutz, FL.
• The neighborhood is based on Burton’s hometown, Burbank.
• Tom Cruise, Jim Carrey and Robert Downey Jr. were all considered for the role of Edward Scissorhands.
• Composer Danny Elfman said of all the films he’s composed music for, Edward Scissorhands is his favourite.
• Edward Scissorhands is Tim Burton’s favourite of all his films.
• Director Trademark: [Tim Burton] [Black and white stripes] Jim’s shirt collar at dinner.
• The restaurant that the family eats at was, at one time, a real restaurant; a national chain diner called “Sambo’s”. It was located directly across the street from Southgate Shopping Center, as appears in the movie. Due to the controversial nature of the name and interior design, the diner (and entire chain) closed sometime in the late 70’s/early 80’s. It remained an abandoned building for many years, until Tim Burton came to town to film “Edward Scissorhands”. Burton’s crew unboarded the doors and windows and redressed the interior to look like a working restaurant again.

Colbert from The Colbert Report returns to Second City

In an arrogant article written by A. J. Liebling in the January 1952 The New Yorker, Chicago was given its “Second City” moniker. The article offended Chicagoans to their core. But true to the Chicagoan-style that uniquely separates us from them, a group of undergraduate students at the University of Chicago took the moniker and established a comedy theater on North Wells Street.

This past weekend Second City celebrated 50 years of its famed existence. Many of its famous alumni from Steve Carell, Stephen Colbert, Jack McBrayer, Jim Belushi, Harold Ramis, Dan Castellaneta, Richard Kind, Bonnie Hunt, Nia Vardalos, Neil Flynn (The Janitor!), and many more came back to Chicago to celebrate and give a performance. It was a tribute and a salute to the beginnings of their careers.

Alan Arkin (far right) got his start here.

Mike Myers

The late John Candy and a young Bill Murray

What started out with a self-mocking name for a comedy theater born from an outsider’s perspective, Second City today has cultivated Hollywood with plenty of comedic talent. It has been dubbed “The Harvard of Comedy.” It’s reach and influence on comedy and American pop culture is immense. From the political satires of The Colbert Report and Tina Fey’s impersonations of ex-governor Sarah Palin, to the story of a 40 Year Old Virgin, or a witty-prankster of a Janitor in Scrubs – no comedic stone is left unturned. No one is spared.

However, the microcosm of Second City speaks volumes about Chicago and its culture. We made it cool to be smart and funny. We can take a joke. We can make fun of ourselves. But most importantly we know how to laugh.

Sorry New York…Chicago has the last laugh.

Credits to Chicago Tribune for pictures. Check this amazing article by theater critic Chris Jones.

From Cinematical, the wonderful Alan Arkin …

Cinematical: Well, how would you describe your approach to taking on roles?

Arkin: You’re making this a very cerebral series of- very little of the acting that I do anymore is cerebral, or cerebral choices. It has to do with my intuition, my instincts, and my feelings. It’s not something I go around thinking “I’ve got to do it this way because blah blah blah, somebody did a movie in 1943 and I don’t want to copy him” or something. It’s all intuitive and instinct by now, and feeling states. It’s not an intellectual process for me. It’s an intellectual process when it’s not working. When it stops working, then I have to think a little bit, but if it’s working, I just stay with my instincts or my feelings.

Cinematical: Of course. It’s a film critic’s nature to intellectualize the process. But do you think that because of your ability to work intuitively, that the work is as challenging or satisfying as it always was?

Arkin: Moreso because I have to nag myself less. I’m very happy to be done with all of the nagging that used to go on when I was first starting out, when I was studying and doing more intellectualizing. But it’s like Louis Armstrong said. They asked him what is jazz, and he said, “if you have to ask the question, then you’ll never find out.”

And that’s that. Turn up, pay attention, don’t bump into the furniture and have some fun. No “journeys” or fucking “arcs” for Alan.

I’d strongly recommend anyone reading this to seek out Keith Gordon’s little-seen 1996 adaptation of Kurt Vonnegut’s “Mother Night” starring Nick Nolte, Arkin and John Goodman. Arkin and Nolte do some stunning work together and it’s the finest adaptation of a work by Vonnegut I’ve seen to date.

But you’ll have to get it from Amazon as there’s no region 4 release. It’s worth it, believe me.

Sunshine Cleaning is a movie by Christine Jeffs, starring Amy Adams, Emily Blunt and Alan Arkin.

Plot:
Rose (Amy Adams) is a single mum who works as a cleaning lady. When her lover Mac (Steve Zahn), a policeman, tells her about the money that’s in crime scene clean-ups, Rose convinces her sister Norah (Emily Blunt) that this would be the perfect opportunity to make some money. Leaving her son in the care of her father (Alan Arkin), who is a freelance salesman, Rose and Norah get to it – with the help of cleaning supplies shop owner Winston (Clifton Collins Jr.).

Sunshine Cleaning is a really sweet comedy with great characters (and with some dark bits) . It’s one of those movies that got no marketing to speak of and it really didn’t deserve it. If you happen to catch it (and you should try to) you get a wonderful story about two sisters finding their place in life.

The performances were all terrific – I honestly couldn’t pick a favourite, even if I had to. And not only the big names where you expect good performances, but also the supporting cast like Clifton Collins Jr. and Mary Lynn Rajskub.

But I think the best thing about this film was the script by Megan Holley – it tells the story of people who don’t have it that easy in their lives, they struggle and they have to fight for their existence, sometimes with each other. But the script does so with the utmost respect. It never gets condescending or tear-jerker-y. Instead it uses the approach to find the things that keep everybody going and focusses on that. And very successfully. [And to think that it was Holley's first script... Great things to come, for sure!]

Sunshine Cleaning feels incredibly lighthearted, though it touches on a lot of subjects that are not, dysfunctional families being one of them, death another. In all of this it chooses a sensitive but ultimately realistic world view.

Plus it has a very nice soundtrack.

Summarising: don’t let the lack of marketing fool you. This movie is definitely worth seeing.

For a lot of people out there, the idea of a comic book movie and the reality of one rarely meet in the middle in terms of financial (or fan) success much to the dismay of most audiences.  Countless times, studios have tempted us with intriguing premises for film adaptations of beloved comic book stories but they unfortunately lead to absolutely dismal efforts.  That said some film adaptations actually do well, other surprisingly beat the odds and, in rare cases, a precious few prove to become some of the finest cinema ever made.  Well I wouldn’t put The Rocketeer in that last category, but it is still a damn fun movie and one that not only beat the odds but won a lot of hearts.  I just adore this film and it’s one of my very favorite comic book adaptations of all time – the others being X-Men, [Tim Burton's] Batman, Batman Begins and Hellboy II, which considering it’s ability to hold it’s own against those powerhouses, I believe that says a lot for this film’s overall quality.

From the moment I left the theater as a kid I knew that “This is what a ‘non-super hero’ comic book movie should be like“.  One thing I still find pretty interesting is that unlike most other comic adaptations, The Rocketeer isn’t a ’super hero’, and Cliff Secord really isn’t a hero ether.  He’s just one guy, caught up in extraordinary events, who ends up fighting to save his girlfriend, and along the way, his country.  I have read the Dave Stevens graphic novel and they played this pretty damn close to the source material, however the original inspiration for Jenny Blake was ‘the’ Betty Page and I’m sure Disney had a hand in changing that character so not to bear much resemblance to the infamous siren of time.

It’s been widely known that Joe Johnston gets some flack for doing films like Jumanji and Jurassic Park III but to his credit, he did the best with what he had to work with.  To be perfectly fair, they weren’t terrible films and I believe they would have been horrendous had he not been there to save those ill-fated features.  He is still a talented film maker (working on all the original Star Wars films didn’t hurt him experience-wise either).  I believe this film has prepared him for the much anticipated The First Avenger: Captain America.  After all, The Rocketeer is perfect evidence to show that he’s comfortable with with WWII, Nazis and plans for world dominaton, so aside from Steven Spielberg, he’s probably the best man for the job I’d say;)

Beyond the “rocket pack” plot device and premise (which still makes me grin like a kid) there’s one element of the film that I love more than all others.  This movie’s soundtrack is probably my favorite score of all time and I absolutely love what James Horner did for this little popcorn flick.  While he is known for putting the same musical riffs in all his movies and creating a pretty repetitive musical composition, he brought a whole lot of something else to this movie which resulted in just an astounding and outstanding score.  This film probably wasn’t expected to be a blockbuster and make a huge dent in move history, but that didn’t stop Horner from giving this film much more emotion, exhilaration and excitement than it probably deserved.  It could have been a throw-away score but he chose to make it very memorable, diverse and he pulled out all the stops.  This music is almost epic in scale for a much smaller and more modest film effort and I think it enhances every single scene and then some.

Switching gears here, The Rocketeer is chock full of actors that seem born to play their parts.  To me, there’s not one mis-cast in the entire film and the diversity of actors created a great quasi-ensemble just made this film work.  Maybe it’s the repeat viewings and the fact that over the years I have become increasingly endeared to this film.  Even so, I feel that the combination of the wise mechanic Alan Arkin, the everyman Bill Campbell, the always exceptional (and my personal favorite James Bond) Timothy Dalton, and even a young (but still talented) Jennifer Connelly all embodied the characters of the comic as well as recall the character-types from the serials which they were based.  Also I know the recent Oscar grabber The Aviator has many people thinking that no one else but DiCaprio could have played as the infamous Howard Hughes, but I have always thought that Terry O’Quinn (yes, Mr. John Lock himself) was more impressive in his minimal part than Leo was in an entire feature.  I always would have liked to see more of a role for him but maybe it’s the minimal presence that make him so intriguing.

I don’t know how many times I have seen this great film (probably nearing 50 I’d wager) and each time is just another exhilarating trip in this rollercoaster of a film.  Fun for kids and adults, The Rocketter has something special for almost any age group and film fan.  Packing quite a lot into this film, I believe it delivers and especially on repeated viewings.  Lastly, while other films, which pack so much into their feature may seem overloaded and sluggish, this film’s ‘rocket pack’ pace was essential to it’s success.  Containing all the fantastic elements that made the Indiana Jones films work so well in the past (Nazis, pre WWII, danger at every turn, and simply great music) this adaptation of Dave Stevens’ graphic novel also is more like a nostalgic call back to the classic serials of old and gives us all one hell of a ride.  Man I sure wish they would release this in a proper cleaned up (or Blu ray) edition.

G-S-T Seal of Approval: GRANTED

P.S. Speaking of serials, check out this neat vintage trailer someone out there created to give this fun flick a more ‘nostaligic’ feel…ejnoy!!

Some formidable names to conclude the series (now at 100 actors and 100 actresses):

Patrick McGoohan, Orson Welles, David Niven, Robert Vaughn, James Coburn, Edward Everett Horton, Walter Huston, Alan Arkin, Vic Morrow, Peter Falk, George Sanders, Steve Buscemi, Ralph Meeker, Joe Shishido, Broderick Crawford, John Turturro, Charles Bronson, Jackie Gleason, Ben Gazzara, Peter Lorre.

Image sources: IMDb, Dr. Macro, Google Images, and my own screen shots.

(related posts: 20 Actors, 20 (more) Actors, 20 Actors (coda), 20 Actors (encore), 20 Actresses, 20 (more) Actresses, 20 Actresses (grand finale), 20 Actresses (ultimo), 20 Actresses (encore))

Gattaca’s gift is its unity of vision. Seldom do films combine music, art, and character with such exquisite resonance. When you think of Gattaca, you recall the score by Michael Nyman, because it embodies the longing the film conveys. Combined with memorable art direction, Gattaca becomes a powerful film that gracefully imprints the memories of those who see it.

Set in a not-so-distant future where the genetically enhanced are offered every social advantage, Gattaca follows the dreams of one un-enhanced man, Vincent Freeman (flamboyantly played by Ethan Hawke). In addition to his inferior genes, Vincent is also hindered by a heart disorder which makes his dream of space travel impossible in the eyes of potential employers. Desperate, he illegally poses as Jerome Morrow (Jude Law), and covertly passes security checks by using Jerome’s superior DNA.

The film is an eloquent parable on the pursuit of happiness. Jerome is born with every advantage but lives in crippled misery asserting, “he wouldn’t have it any other way.” Vincent desperately wants to leave his world; every morning he violently brushes his skin, trying to abolish as much of himself as possible. Yet he tackles his dream with ferocity – something few of us dare do.

Ultimately the film echoes our innermost desires – to love, to hope, and reach for dreams that reside at the extremity of our reach, just beyond the stars.

In one scene, someone calls Pippa Lee an enigma. She replies by saying, “To be perfectly honest, I’ve had enough of being an enigma. I want to be known.” Well Pippa, don’t get ahead of yourself because it’s the enigmatic elements that make The Private Lives of Pippa Lee curiously ingenious. Based on the title and the film’s poster, I’d like to bet you’ve already formulated a slew of preconceived notions. Good for you, because that’ll make the revelation of the film’s richly layered plot far more effective.

Click here to read more.

Agente Smart – Casino totale è una commedia americana del 2008 adattamento cinematografico di Mel Brooks e Buck Henry di una parodia della serie televisiva di spionaggio con lo stesso nome del 1960. Gli interpreti sono: Steve Carell Maxwell Smart e Anne Hathaway agente 99. Alan Arkin, che ha anche lavorato con Carell in Little Miss Sunshine, interpreta il capo.

Leggi altre notizie su: | Peter Segal | Steve Carell | Anne Hathaway | Dwayne Johnson | Alan Arkin

Cuando uno era jovenzano estaba de moda la música de un fulano con bombachos y gafas que con una canción llamada U can’t touch this copaba las listas de éxitos del mercachifleo musical. Como es obvio, aclamado como precursor del rap y el hip-hop, el tipo en cuestión fue olvidado como siempre en estos casos justo al cuarto de hora de su éxito. Perplejo se quedó quien escribe cuando, todavía de joven y para más inri, en una de las millonésimas reposiciones de El equipo A que emitía (y sigue emitiendo) cierto canal televisivo español con cierta inclinación a lo cutre, descubrió este tema del ya fallecido (pero no creemos que por eso) Rick James, Super Freak, todo un homenaje a sí mismo (mucho ojito, que aunque el meloncio éste gaste semejante pinta en la foto, en sus inicios compartió grupo con todo un Neil Young), en un capítulo que contaba con el intérprete en un pequeño papel. Luego resultó evidente que M. C. Hammer había destrozado la (ya de por sí triste) canción de James para “rapear” (en esa asquerosa moda consistente en tomar una melodía de éxito y devaluarla poniéndole chumba chumbas varios, costumbre convertida en habitual ya y a la que se ha consagrado lo más vomitivo del espectro musical mundial, empezando por ese engendro llamado Madonna), despojándola, eso sí, de la guasa con que se la tomaba el autor original.

Avispados, los responsables de Pequeña Miss Sunshine, esa joya de la comedia dramática dirigida por Jonathan Dayton y Valerie Faris en 2006 recuperaron la versión original para la escena final, el número musical de la pequeña Olive (Abigail Breslin) en el certamen de belleza infantil con cuyo despliegue coreográfico ensayado durante horas en compañía de su abuelo, habitual de los bares de strip-tease, la niña escandaliza a la concurrencia y defeca virtualmente sobre semejante bochorno de concurso (lo cual es extensible a los de la misma especie protagonizados por mayores de edad).

From all outward appearances, Pippa Lee (ROBIN WRIGHT PENN) leads a charmed existence. She is the devoted wife of an accomplished publisher (ALAN ARKIN) thirty years her senior, the proud mother of two grown children, and a trusted friend and confidant to all who cross her path. But as Pippa dutifully follows her husband to a new life in a staidConnecticut retirement community, her idyllic world and the persona she has built over the course of her marriage will be put to the ultimate test.

In truth, looks are deceiving, and this picture-perfect woman has seen more than her fair share of turmoil in her youth. Embarking on a bittersweet journey of self-discovery, accompanied by a new, strange and soulful acquaintance (KEANU REEVES), Pippa must now confront both her volatile past and the hidden resentment of her seemingly perfect life in order to find her true sense of self.

By turns wry, humorous, and moving, THE PRIVATE LIVES OF PIPPA LEE presents the complex portrait of the many lives behind a single name.

Golden Globe nominee Robin Wright Penn and Academy Award® winner, Alan Arkin head an all-star cast that includes Blake Lively as the young Pippa Lee, Maria Bello as her mother, Suky Sarkissian, Keanu Reeves as Pippa’s inscrutable neighbor, Chris Nadeau, Monica Bellucci as the socialite Gigi Lee, triple Academy Award® nominee Julianne Moore as the freewheeling Kat, Academy Award® nominee and Golden Globe winner Winona Ryder as Pippa’s trusted friend, Sandra Dulles, Mike Binder as novelist Sam Shapiro and rising stars Zoe Kazan and Ryan as Grace and Ben Lee, Pippa’s young adult children.

THE PRIVATE LIVES OF PIPPA LEE is adapted from writer-director Rebecca Miller’s novel of the same name. It is produced by Lemore Syvan from Elevation Filmworks, and Dede Gardner and Jeremy Kleiner from Plan B Entertainment. Executive producers are Winchester Capital, Jean-Luc De Fanti, and The Salt Company partners, Cyril Mégret, Robert Bevan and Samantha Horley

Starring: Robin Wright Penn, Alan Arkin, Maria Bello, Monica Bellucci, Blake Lively, Julianne Moore, Keanu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Mike Binder
Director: Rebecca Miller
Screenwriter: Rebecca Miller
Studio: Screen Media

MOVIE TRAILER :

Life Sometimes Isn't Easy

sunshine cleaning, sebuah film dengan embel embel “from the produser  of little miss sunshine”. otomatis ketika melihatnya sayapun langsung menontonnya, dengan jajaran cast yang lumayan, amy adams, emily blunt plus alan arkin, alhasil cerita drama yang tidak biasa pun terlahir, dengan cerita yang agak nyeleneh tapi lumayan menyentuh.

menceritakan rose (adams) yang berprofesi sehari hari sebagai pelayan maupun pembantu rumahan, bekerja seharian demi menghidupi keluarganya, sedangkan rose mempunyai adik yaitu norah (blunt) seorang wanita pengangguran yang masih tinggal bersama ayahnya (arkin). rose sadar bekerja banting tulang tidak bisa mencukupi kehidupannya plus untuk membiayai anaknya sekolah, akhirnya dia mendapat ide karena sering “tidur” dengan temannya seorang polisi yang selalu cerita biaya membersihkan TKP bekas pembunuhan lumayan mahal karena sedikit orang yang mengerjakannya.

tiba tiba saja rose berpikir bahwa ini saat yang tepat untuk ganti profesi sebagai tukang pembersih TKP, dia pun mengajak adiknya untuk bekerja sama, maka petualangan pun terjadi, seperti cerita yang sederhana, tapi didalamnya tersimpan bermacam macam kisah menyentuh, bagaimana perjuangan rose untuk bisa membiayai anaknya, serta rasa trauma norah atas kehilangan ibunya yang sebenarnya rose juga rasakan, plus ketika norah “mengacaukan” tugas pembersihan TKP terakhirnya semakin membuat rose tertekan, but its always a way out right?

drama keluarga yang serba kesulitan sana sini disajikan dengan unik dan kadang lucu sebagai agen pembersih TKP wanita, hingga sang ayah pun akhirnya mengerti bagaimana kesulitan rose dan selalu menanggapinya dengan tenang, intinya cerita film ini adalah bagaimana sebuah keluarga bisa menghadapi cobaan secara bersama sama dengan cara unik mereka, toh worth to watch sebagai hiburan serta “charger” semangat anda. enjoy.

WORD

paragon [par-uh-gon, -guhn] n. 1. a model or pattern of excellence or of a particular excellence 2. Printing. a 20-point type 3. an unusually large, round pearl ∞ v. 4. to compare; parallel 5. to be a match for; rival

BIRTHDAY

Asa Gray (1810), Dorothy Dix (1861), George Gallup (1901), Imogene Coca (1908), Hank Ballard (1927), Don Cherry (1936), Margaret Atwood (1939), Linda Evans (1942), Graham Parker (1950), Delroy Lindo (1952), Kevin Nealon (1953), Elizabeth Perkins (1960), Owen Wilson (1968), Duncan Sheik (1969), Mike Epps (1970), Chloë Sevigny (1974)

STANDPOINT

OK. What’s irking the shit out of me today is quite simple. People keep asking me, “Why do you write so angry?”

Yes. I write angry. Yes. I am occassionally an angry person. But that doesn’t mean much of anything except I’m one of those folks who’s easily bothered by the people I come into contact with everyday. And you may not be one of those folks. And that’s fine. But maybe you should be.

You see, my problem with people thinking I’m too angry is there aren’t enough of you out there who are remotely angry enough. Being angry or annoyed is not cool because everyone wants everyone to just be cool. But, the truth is, there aren’t enough of you out there acting remotely cool enough.

And, so, if I tend to get a bit animated or a little too passionate about the current state of most everything, you’ll have to forgive me. I’m just not down with everyone being so goddam down about stuff.

QUOTATION

What I’ve learned about teaching is to refer back to the root of that word, which is educo, which means “to pull from.” Education does not mean jamming information into somebody’s head. Rather, it’s that ancient idea that all knowledge is within us; to teach is to help somebody pull it out of themselves. → Alan Arkin

TUNE

Tonight, I’m headed down, with Jer and Ezgi, to World Cafe Live in Philadelphia to see Blind Pilot. I hope I hear “The Story I Heard.” I really can’t imagine a scenario where I wouldn’t.

GALLIMAUFRY

→ Suddenly, pharmaceutical companies have come to the conclusion it might be a good idea to get into the preventive medicine business, instead of the curbing and/or curing side of it. In the next five years, there may be vaccines available for such maladies as Alzheimer’s disease, AIDS, Malaria, grass allergies and even something called traveler’s diarrhea. With the soaring prices of prescriptions and the subsequent scramble to find other options like the internet and Canada, maybe someone at one of these companies said somethig like, “Hey, what if we switch gears and actually try to find a genuine way to help people? I mean, we’ve tried everything else, right? Let’s give it a shot.” Funny, how a completely fucked economical situation can bring out the best in people.

→ A group of Native Americans, who’d filed a suit against the Washington Redskins over the use of the name “Redskins,” had their case tossed out by the US Supreme Court yesterday for, from what I can tell, is a complete technicality. I’m no lawyer, though, so I could easily be wrong. However, what I’m completely unwrong about is that the NFL franchise should just give up the name. We’re headed toward the future here, people, let’s keep our eyes on the ball. (Plus, the Redskins are so bad I’m sure hardly anyone would notice if they became the Washington Suckasses.)

→ Jonathan Safran Foer, author of one of my favorite books of all-time, Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close, has a new non-fiction novel coming out titled Eating Animals. Check out his interview with the AV Club.

Hmm… tough one.

Has she? Or hasn’t she?

Did Blake Lively get plastic surgery on her tata’s?

Courtesy of WireImage.

Here she is seen at the after party for The Cinema Society & A Diamond Is Forever screening of “The Private Lives of Pippa Lee” at the Ace Hotel in New York City. This film is buzzing with Oscar all over and one scene depicts her sleeping with 75 year old Alan Arkin! geahh.

They seem so perky!!

What do you think??

Well, she definitely got her nose done so it wouldn’t surprise me if she got a boob job.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

SIDE-BY-SIDE ANALYSIS:

Drīzumā: Pipas Lī privātā dzīve (The Private Lives of Pippa Lee) Kinoteātros 20.11.2009.

„Pipas Lī privātā dzīve” ir amerikāņu rakstnieces un režisores Rebekas Milleres uzņemtā drāma. Scenārijs balstīts uz pašas režisores sarakstītas grāmatas „Pipas Lī privātā dzīve” motīviem. Rebeka Millere ne reizi vien plūkusi laurus augstas raudzes kinofestivālos, ieguvusi prestižo Sandensas kinofestivāla balvu – 1995. un 2002. gadā.

Pirmizrādi filma piedzīvoja jau šā gada 9. februārī Berlīnes kinofestivālā, kā arī pēc tam tika izrādīta Sidnejas, Edinburgas un Toronto kino festivālos. Drīzumā nonāks arī pie mums-Latvijas kinoteātros.

Filmas producents ir Breds Pits, kurš kopš 2007. gada aktīvi ķēries arī pie producenta darba un nu jau viņa producenta kontā ir kāds ducis filmu.

Drāma stāsta par Pippu Lī – uzticīgu sievu, lielisku māti, kas kā šķiet dzīvo neapskaužamu dzīvi. Bet kad viņa pienākuma vadīta seko savam vīram, lai sāktu dzīvi mazpilsētā, viss mainās… pagātne nekur neizgaist. Varbūt viņa ir dzīvojusi daudzas citu dzīves, izņemot savējo…

Režisors: Rebecca Miller

Lomās: Robin Wright Penn, Alan Arkin, Keanu Reeves, Julianne Moore, Monica Bellucci, Winona Ryder

Okay, Harrison Ford is 63 and they are still talking about doing another Indiana Jones film. His last film, 2003’s “Hollywood Homicide” was probably the worst film of his career and it has taken him three long years to headline another film.

If you really think about it, it has been six years since Ford has done anything really interesting and that probably was 2000’s “What Lies Beneath” which was quite a good little thriller. And before that was probably 1997’s “Air Force One” which was the last time Ford has done an action film.

The plot for Harrison Ford’s latest film, “Firewall”, loosely revolves around a techno-suave bank robber (Paul Bettany) who breaks into a bank manager’s house and holds his family hostage until the manager digitally removes $100 million dollars from the bank’s richest clients.

Ford plays the manager and Oscar nominee Virginia Madsen plays his wife. Some of the key supporting players include Robert Patrick, Robert Forster and Alan Arkin.

From start to finish this film feels like a lot of other movies. The home invasion tactic, the likeable but evil villain, the stalwart hero, the ultra-slick computer gimmickry are all part of what makes this film another run-of-the-mill modern thriller.

Some of the sequences in this film reminded me of the 2004 Robert Redford film, “The Clearing” especially the conflict between Bettany and Ford.

I liked the performances of Ford and Bettany but really never felt anything for any of the supporting cast. Because this dynamic never flourished it is hard to say if this thriller succeeded in what it was trying to do.

There have been so many ransom films over the years that “Firewall” just falls among them. It isn’t any worse, good as or better than any of those films. It is just one of them and it is good for what it is.

It is a by-the-book thriller but it sure is nice seeing Ford back to his old tricks as the hero and having a couple nice action scenes even if he’s 63.

3.5 out of 5

So Says the Soothsayer.