Leon: The Professional

Leon: The Professional
"Leon is a hitman, and happy with his life. When a young girl comes home to find her family has been killed by a drug dealer, she runs to him for help. When she discovers he is a hitman, she asks him to teach her the skills to take her revenge." 


3 Stars 
How do you reconcile the contrast that can arise between a piece of brilliant acting and a case of underwhelming story telling?  Furthermore, how do you rate a film when you have simultaneous guilt about begrudgingly overpraising a weak script in order to avoid dismissing a bevy of superb performances?  Well, in the words of my father, "You just suck it up."


Leon: The Professional is a movie that begins with all the promise in the world.  With virtually no exposition, the audience is thrown into the cold, calculated world of contract killing.  Leon (Jean Reno) is given an order to hit a group of thieves who are just passing through NYC.  We aren't told why they're bad guys, and we don't really need to know.  All that matters is that there's are bounties on their heads, and the ill-fated bastards were unlucky enough to have their numbers picked by Leon.  The tension created by the opening scene itself is stressful, if not almost palpable.  The skill and finesse shown by Leon as he deftly picks off each unsuspecting victim is almost as eerie at it is impressive.  Suffice it to say, he makes Jason Bourne and his commendable skills almost look rough and undisciplined.  But, the scene also gives us a glimpse into the code that Leon lives by, "No Women.  No Children."  While it may seem paradoxical, this concept of "moral standards" for a contract killer is necessary for the story line because, how else is the film maker going to get the audience to pull for an amoral leading man who literally kills for a living?


Enter Mathilda (Natalie Portman) who was able to act at a level that no 13 year old girl has any business to be acting.  I hurt with every one of her tears and I rejoiced with every one of her smiles.  I cannot describe it, but this little girl enthralled to a degree that I found myself genuinely concerned with her safety and emotional state, even though every logical part of my brain kept reminding me that it was all just "for pretends".  I know she just won an Oscar for this year's Black Swan, but if I had my way, she would have placed that golden statue on her mantle 17 years earlier.


And it wasn't just the performance of Reno and Portman that carried the team.  The supporting cast of Danny Aiello and Michael Badalucco was firing on all cylinders, too.  But the highlight outside of the primary duo was unquestionably Gary Oldman in one of his first major Hollywood roles.  Oldman plays Stansfield a corrupt, ironically drug addicted DEA agent who is the quintessential loose cannon.  These are the types of villains who really get my adrenaline pumping in a movie.  These kinds of characters who follow no rules and show no mercy to anyone or anything that stands in their way.  You honestly do find yourself convinced that Stansfield is going to kill the 13 year old Portman in the first 15 minutes of the film, even though you're head reminds you that's not going to happen because the movie is two hours long and you may need a protagonist.  There is a fine line between a crazed lunatic and psychotic villain that Oldman treads terrifically.


But, alas, the performances (as spectacular as they are) are pretty much the only thing worth praising about the film.  While the direction is above average, the story just leaves so much to be desired.  The back stories of Leon, Mathilda, and Stansfield are only touched upon, and I found it hard to wrap my head around all that was going without knowing what the characters motives were.  The scenes involving Mathilda's "training" almost felt like an afterthought and the subtle undertones of a potential sexual relationship between Mathilda and Leon was just bizarre.  While in most situations "less is more", in the particular case I felt that further developing the relationships of all the main characters could have done nothing but enhance the plot.


So, while I wanted so badly for this one to become one of my more revered films, I think it has to fall into the category of a disappointment.  Don't get me wrong, I think it's definitely worth watching, but you will have to power through a couple aspects.  Because the movie was shot in the early nineties, the wardrobe and hair styles reflect as such.  Maybe it's just me and my snobbish ways, but I sometimes have trouble taking seriously the guy in a Miami Vice green suit and Kenny G hair firing off rounds from an Uzi, but maybe I'm just old fashioned that way.  But, if you're looking for some shoot 'em up, you're going to find it.  The movie isn't gory, per se, but it is most definitely bloody, and I'm talking Tarentino bloody.  There is definitely a legitimate argument that could be made implying the movie may have been somewhat diminished by getting sucked in to the explosions and car chases that seemed to permeate the 90s film landscape.  So, while one of the final scenes might end (quite literally) with a bang, for me it was just a whimper.

Star Trek (2009)

Star Trek
"On the day of James Kirk's birth, his father dies on his ship in a last stand against a mysterious alien vessel. Twenty years later, Kirk has grown into a young troublemaker inspired by Capt. Christopher Pike to fulfill his potential in Starfleet even as he annoys his instructors like young Lt. Spock. Suddenly, there is an emergency at Vulcan and the newly commissioned USS Enterprise is crewed with promising cadets like Nyota Uhura, Hikaru Sulu, Pavel Chekov and even Kirk himself thanks to Leonard McCoy's medical trickery. Together, this crew will have an adventure in the final frontier where the old legend is altered forever even as the new version of it is just beginning."

5 stars

When I saw the preview for Star Trek in theaters last year, I was with Colin. They showed this one: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Subdp7dnlZ0 When the cop asks the boy his name, and he answers with "James Tiberius Kirk!", I yelled "YEAH!" and even did a fist pump. In the middle of the movie theater.

Colin has accused me of being a closet Trekkie. I'm not - I'm just a pop culture junkie. Yeah, I know a bit of the background of Star Trek. I got most of the 'in-jokes' in the movie. But I know just as much about Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the X-Men, and Batman.

The first time I saw the movie, I went with my dad. He's the exact right age for growing up with the Star Trek TV series. He's known to get easily choked up at movies, and there was a tear in his eye when we get the shot with the entire crew all together for the first time. I was a bit verklempt myself.

Do you need to be a Trekkie to enjoy this movie? Not at all. Will some of the jokes, sight gags, and famous lines slip by you unnoticed? Probably, but that won't affect your movie experience. This is simply a great sci-fi action movie. And with J. J. Abrams directing, it's also a cool sci-fi action movie. The special effects are excellent, especially when you compare to what Gene Rodenberry had to work with back in 1966. And it's less computer-generated than you might think. The lens flares are flashlights being shined into camera lenses, and the parachuting scene was filmed by the actors standing on a mirror that reflected the sky. The action scenes (and there are plenty, even before the opening credits) will keep you on the edge of your seat - Kirk seems to have a knack for almost falling to his death. That's another bonus (in my eyes) of revamping a well-known story: you know none of your favorite characters are going to die. Unless they are wearing a red shirt, of course. 

My favorite part of the whole movie is that J. J. Abrams handled the time-travel element quite well. And now he has introduced the concept of an alternate Star Trek reality, he can get away with diverging from the canon in the future. And I'm looking forward to many, many sequels.

I will end with my only nitpick: Winona Ryder as Spock's mother?! What, you couldn't get an actual 60-year-old woman to play the part of an old lady?

Robyn's Response: Layer Cake

(Todd's review here)

2 stars

There's a subset of movies known as 'British Crime Films.' Snatch, Rock'nRolla, Layer Cake. You know the drill - British mobsters with an extensive network, guys all named One Two, Turkish, and Mr. Lucky. A caper gone hilariously and violently wrong. A pretty girl or two. Everything working out for our anti-hero in the end.

I loved Snatch. I liked Rock'n'Rolla. If I saw Layer Cake first, it might have a higher rating. But it's more of the same, and it doesn't even do 'the same' well. I wasn't really into the storyline (drug dealer pulls one last con before going straight), and I kept losing track of the characters. (Is it weird to say that British people look the same to me?) Sienna Miller (who I don't think is that hot) was on screen purely for some T&A. At one point, the characters say 'So you killed (X) because he did (Y).' Normally I hate it when the character vocalizes what the audience has concluded on their own, but this time I needed it. And I didn't even pick up on the fact that Daniel Craig's character's name was never mentioned. There was too much random shit going on.

The Lookout

The Lookout

“An admired high school hockey player (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) with a bright future foolishly takes a drive in the night with his girl friend and two other friends with his headlights off with devastating results. The former athlete is left with a brain injury that prevents him from remembering many things for extended periods of time. To compensate, he keeps notes in a small notebook to aid him in remembering what he is to do. He also lives with a blind friend (Jeff Daniels) who aids him. Obviously, with the mental incapacitation, he is unable to have meaningful work. Thus he works as a night cleaning man in a bank. It is there he comes under the scrutiny of a gang planning to rob the bank. The leader (Matthew Goode) befriends him and gets him involved with a young woman (Isla Fisher) who further reels him in. After they get close and after reeling him in with his own failures, the bank plan unfolds. Confused but wanting to escape his current existence, he initially goes along with the scheme. After realizing he is being used, he attempts to stop the robbery, which of course immediately goes awry. Bruce McGill and Alberta Watson also co-star as the young man's parents, who still search for the person that was there before the tragic crash.”

4 stars

Let me start out by saying that this is a good movie. Scratch that, this is a really good movie. If you’ve seen the great movie that is ‘Memento’, then you will identify with this movie immediately. They have very similar feels and plot lines. But it’s not fair to say that this is a ‘Memento’ knock off because this film has a personality all its own. We open up with Chris Pratt (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and three of his friends driving down a country road the night of prom. It’s a really beautiful scene in which Chris turns off his headlights so everyone can see the wave of fireflies that lines the countryside. His arrogance is obvious, though, and eventually causes a wreck with a stalled combine in the road that leaves two friends dead, Chris’ girlfriend without a limb, and Chris with major brain damage.

The story really begins a few years later with Chris living in a dump of an apartment with a sage-like blind roommate played by Jeff Daniels. Chris is functional and his memory loss is not as prevalent as the protagonist in ‘Memento’, but he has a major problem with sequencing. Because of this, he must write all of his daily routine down in a notebook so he can remember how to get through the day. The good news is that he does seem to be progressing, but the internal conflict is gut wrenching. In an instant he went from being a smart, charming, promising athlete to a guy who can only handle the monotonous job of being a night janitor at the local bank. Further layers are added when we learn that Chris’ family is very rich and his father VERY demanding. Chris has chosen to live in squalor, however, as penance for his selfish actions which also include him visiting the site of his crash every week to remind him (as he puts it), “. . . just how big a piece of shit . . .” he is.

Enter Gary Spargo, a supposed former classmate of Chris’ older sister. Unbeknownst to Chris, Gary knows absolutely everything about him, the way he feels about himself, how the injury has affected him, and the routine he repeats daily. Gary (played by an astounding Matthew Goode) uses all of this information to masterfully manipulate Chris into becoming an unwitting accomplice to their planned bank robbery.

The performances really stand out in this movie. Gary makes his manipulation effortless, so much so that I almost wanted to join up with his bank crew. His ability to make all of the people around him do exactly what he wants is impressive and a bit unsettling. Jeff Daniels also did a spectacular job of playing a convincing blind man. So many time people turn a blind person into a cartoon and it really detracts from the movie. This is not the case here. Last, but not least, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is just awesome. Apparently he would deprive himself of sleep and work out intensely right before scenes in order to give the character a very disoriented feel. Needless to say it worked because we totally buy Chris as a mentally damaged young man.

As with any movie, it is not without its drawbacks. To me the heist itself and the ensuing actions by Chris lack the intelligence that had been prevalent in the entire movie leading up to that point. There are also several storylines that are left open ended regarding Chris’ father, Chris’ love interest (Isla Fisher), and the police officer who brings Chris donuts every night during work. But when you look at the film as a whole, these are only minor critiques and shouldn’t detract from the film’s effect. Ultimately the movie is about anger, remorse, and eventually redemption, and it’s one of the better ones that I have seen in a while.

Layer Cake

Layer Cake

“The successful drug dealer Mr. X plans his criminal career intermediating business with drugs without calling the attention, working with a small gang and honoring his payments with the suppliers. On the day planned for his early retirement, the powerful mobster Jimmy Price gives two assignments to him: find Charlie, the addicted daughter of his associate Eddie Temple and negotiate um million pills of high-quality ecstasy with the stupid smalltime gangster Duke. Mr. X hires two acquaintances crooks in a night-club to find Charlie, and he unexpectedly meets Duke's cousin Sidney with his sexy girlfriend Tammy and flirts with her. But Mr. X discovers that the ecstasy was stolen from the dangerous and wild Serbian drug lord Dragan that wants the head of Duke and the drugs back. Further, Eddie shows a tape proving that he has been double-crossed by Jimmy, and also wants the ecstasy. The smart Mr. X plots a scheme to resolve the situation and meet Tammy.”

3.5 stars

This film ain’t easy; you really got to pay attention because there is a lot going on. It has a feel of Snatch, but with a little more reality. By this I mean that Snatch, to me, is very tongue in cheek. The deaths are very over the top so they don’t have as much weight to them, but that’s intentional. This movie is much more down to earth and gritty.

It’s kind of odd to see Daniel Craig play this kind of role. As an American, I am very much a Johnny-come-lately to his career so I have really only seen him in the Bond films. Obviously in those movies he is the epitome of cool and always seems to be in control of the situation. But in this film, that is not the case. While his character is intelligent, he constantly seems to be adapting to outside factors that keep throwing him off his game. The feeling that his character is “in too deep” crosses your mind several times. Just when you think he is a step ahead of his antagonists, the plot will take a hard left turn.

There is one glaring problem with this movie, and I am not even going to pretend that my argument is unbiased or has any intellectual validity at all, but here goes. THERE IS NOT ENOUGH SIENNA MILLER!!! For me, she is one of the ten most beautiful women in Hollywood today and the fact that her screen time is limited to a combined 10 minutes is almost a crime against humanity. Granted, she does take full advantage of her all-too-tiny amount of screen time. In one scene she seductively dances with a cigarette just dangling from her lips and in another we get the great pleasure of seeing her change in to a black teddy with attached garters and askldjhsfdah;sd;asjk;ghd; . . . sorry, I passed out on the keyboard.

Anyway, in the end I think most people would be satisfied with this film. I didn’t think it was the greatest, but it did a well enough job of keeping my attention for the 105 minutes. And the ending will probably feel refreshing to those of us that are tired of the dull way that most of these shoot ‘em up flicks conclude. As the boss puts it, “Welcome to the Layer Cake.”

Men In Black & Men In Black II

Men In Black and Men In Black II
"Men in Black follows the exploits of agents Kay and Jay, members of a top-secret organization established to monitor and police alien activity on Earth. The two Men in Black find themselves in the middle of the deadly plot by an intergalactic terrorist who has arrived on Earth to assassinate two ambassadors from opposing galaxies. In order to prevent worlds from colliding, the MiB must track down the terrorist and prevent the destruction of Earth. It's just another typical day for the Men in Black."
"Kay and Jay reunite to provide our best, last and only line of defense against a sinister seductress who levels the toughest challenge yet to the MIBs untarnished mission statement: protecting the earth from the scum of the universe."

5 stars

While I was writing up my review of Wolverine, I had TBS on in the background. And TBS plays MIB and MIB2 all the time, and I watch it all the time, and tonight is no exception. These movies are pure entertainment, and they are funny. Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones have perfect chemistry and play off of each other beautifully. Smith (Jay) might get the funny lines, be Jones (Kay)s' reactions are just as great. Plus there's a ton of cameos (Biz Markie as the beatboxing alien!), and I love a good cameo.

Kay: All right, Beatrice, there was no alien. The flash of light you saw in the sky was not a UFO. Swamp gas from a weather balloon was trapped in a thermal pocket and reflected the light from Venus.
Jay: Wait a minute. You just flash that thing, it erases her memory, and you just make up a new one?
Kay: A standard issue neuralyzer.
Jay: And that weak-ass story's the best you can come up with?
Kay: On a more personal note Beatrice, Edgar ran off with an old girlfriend. You're gonna go stay with your mom a couple nights. You're gonna get over it and decide you're better off.
Jay: Well, yeah, you know, 'cause 'cause he never appreciated you anyway. In fact, you know what - you kicked him out. And now that he's gone you're gonna go into town, you go to Bloomingdale's and find some nice dresses, get yourself some shoes, you know, find somewhere, maybe you can get a facial. And, uh, oh - hire a decorator to come in here quick, 'cause... damn.
(No one says 'Damn!' like Will Smith)

Jay: K! He's a Ballchinian!

Kay: [Explaining how most of the aliens are in Manhattan] You remember "Casablanca", right?

Jay: Yeah.
Kay: Same thing, just no Nazis.

(that one's for Todd)

Wolverine

X-Men Origins: Wolverine
"It's the story of how Wolverine became Wolverine. Do  you really need a summary?"

4 stars

I love movies based on comic books. There's action and comic relief and great characters. I especially like origin stories and prequels because you get to learn the backgrounds of your favorite heroes.

Wolverine (the movie) is a little melodramatic and anvil-y*. But it's based on a comic book, so what did you expect? The good thing is, since Wolverine (the character) is basically part of the pop culture canon, we don't get a lot of unnecessary exposition and explanation. Yes, essentially the whole move is exposition, but the movie doesn't waste time on things like what a mutant is or explaining the whole X-Men universe.  If you don't know who the X-Men are or if you don't care, this movie isn't for you. If you're like me, you'll love seeing cameos from your favorite mutants (Hi Gambit!), no matter how much the actor's accent wavers (Hi Taylor Kitsch!), and you might even squeal a little bit at the final scene (after the credits).

Is this movie gonna win any Oscars? Hell no. But it's enjoyable, and that's good enough for me. Not every movie needs to change my life - I'm happy to be simply entertained for a few hours.

*Anvils, anvil-y, anvilicious: Referring metaphorically to the cartoon practice of dropping a big, heavy anvil onto a character. When I use the term, it means that a movie uses really heavy-handed and obvious plot points or movie techniques to get a point across, rather than giving the audience some credit for being able to figure out subtle nuances. 

Casablanca

Casablanca
"In World War II Casablanca, Rick Blaine, exiled American and former freedom fighter, runs the most popular nightspot in town. The cynical lone wolf Blaine comes into the possession of two valuable letters of transit. When Nazi Major Strasser arrives in Casablanca, the sycophantic police Captain Renault does what he can to please him, including detaining Czech underground leader Victor Laszlo. Much to Rick's surprise, Lazslo arrives with Ilsa, Rick's one time love. Rick is very bitter towards Ilsa, who ran out on him in Paris, but when he learns she had good reason to, they plan to run off together again using the letters of transit. Well, that was their original plan...."

6 STARS (reserved only for this movie)

So, I figured I couldn't do this blog justice without making my favorite movie of all time the first review. There is almost nothing about this film I don't love. It's filled with some of the most memorable quotes in cinema history and, odds are, you know all of them but you just may not realize where they come from. SIX quotes from Casablanca are listed on AFI's List of Top 100 Movie Quotes of All Time. One of them ("Round up the usual suspects.") even inspired a movie of its own.

But its not just the quotes that make this movie. Once in a very long while a film just seamlessly comes together with direction, acting, writing, and music . . . this is one of those movies. The key elements are an intertwining love triangle and the plight of thousands of refugees trying to escape the persecution of Nazi europe. Bogart portrays surly bar owner Rick as only he can. At first we are led to believe that Rick is a self centered anti-hero who "sticks his neck out for no one". But as the story develops we discover the layers to his character and the broken heart that has led to his life of eternal bachelor-dom. This wound is reopened when his former lover Ilsa coincidentally walks into his "gin joint" . . . with her husband.

Paul Henried portrays Ilsa's husband, Victor Laszlo, who is the head of the underground movement in Europe aiming to topple the Nazi regime. Ilsa is forced to choose between the man she believes in and the man she truly loves. The chemistry between Ingrid Bergman and Humphrey Bogart is almost palpable and the flashback of their love affair in Paris is one you won't soon forget ending in the now famous line, "Kiss me, kiss me as if it were the last time." Do you have goosebumps yet?

I guess I love this movie so much because of how intriicate it is. Seeing it once will only scratch the surface, I find something new everytime I watch it. The casting is spot on and the acting will make you wish the movie wouldn't end. And speaking of the ending, it will definitely not be one that you are expecting, but it will be one that makes you understand why the film is so revered.

In this day and age of Mega-Budget action movies and dwindling attention spans, I completely realize that I am in the minority for my generation in loving a movie that is so "basic". But if you give this movie a chance and really pay attention to what it is saying, I believe you will have the same reaction as the people of Casablanca, because in the end "Everybody Comes to Ricks."