One Day (2011, U.S.)

I had been looking forward to this movie for ages. I read a review of the book in Library Journal or Booklist last year before it was first published in the U.S., bought it for the library, and read it as soon as it came out. I loved it. Of the 122 books I read last year, it was one of only 7 that I gave five stars to. I thought the concept, the writing, the everything was absolutely stellar. Therefore, I guess it was inevitable that the movie could only pale in comparison.

I've said recently that Anne Hathaway has really been growing on me lately, and I really liked her in this. I think I've seen Jim Sturgess in a couple things, but he's never really stuck in my mind. I really liked him in this too. Their chemistry was decent, much better as friends than lovers, but it still worked. The costumes and sets really help keep the viewer oriented as the plot whizzes from year to year, from the late 1980s to the present day. Like the book it's based on, the movie's story is fundamentally good. I just didn't feel as emotionally invested in the characters as David Nicholls made me feel.(This is slightly odd, as Nicholls adapted the screenplay himself. Novels and films are inherently different mediums though, I guess.)

I don't know, I feel like I'm being unfair. If I had seen the movie without reading the book, I probably would have thought it was incredible—writing, acting, setting, and the rest. As it is though, I feel like I'm comparing a stationary star to a comet. The one just isn't as magical having experienced the other. Still, I definitely recommend the movie. (And highly recommend the book!)

Rating: 3.5

The Social Network (2010, U.S.)

I was absolutely immersed in this film within the first five minutes. It amazes me how quickly they made a movie about such recent history, with a wealth of mostly accurate detail. Truly fascinating.

The acting was very strong. I think the only other movie that I've seen Jesse Eisenberg in was Adventureland, which I also loved him in. However, I think he was even better in this. From the very first, his witty, sarcastic, fast talking makes him the picture of the arrogant, insecure intellectual. He was definitely the sun around which all the other actors/characters orbited. Though none of them touched Eisenberg in terms of talent, most of the other actors were fairly strong. Even Justin Timberlake, who I was more than a little wary to watch, wasn't bad.

This is a dark film, both literally and figuratively. Perhaps the dark, mostly nighttime settings were symbolic. (Then again, maybe computer nerd types mostly work at night.) Even the brightest scene in the Facebook offices toward the end of the film didn't seem "light." It was a clinical, lonely sort of whiteness. It's also dark in that there are many betrayals and broken friendships. This has to be the unhappiest movie about a billionaire ever made. (Well, perhaps discounting Marie Antoinette and other non-modern billionaires.)

I can't even think of another movie I've ever seen about such modern history/pop culture, so it's hard to compare this to anything, but I will definitely say that it paints an interesting picture of the world we live in and the dark side of the birth of a company we take for granted daily. I would highly recommend this to anyone.

Rating: 4.0

W. (2008, U.S.)

Of course I thought I was going to like this one. And I was right. It was great. Oliver Stone is a wonderful director, and while he clearly isn't Bush's biggest fan, I think he did his best to make the film as unbiased as possible.

Blogger is silly and will only let me tag so many things per post, so let me list who portrayed all the major characters—Elizabeth Banks (Laura Bush), Ellen Burstyn (Barbara Bush), James Cromwell (George H.W. Bush), Richard Dreyfuss (Dick Cheney), Michael Gaston (General Tommy Franks), Scott Glenn (Donald Rumsfeld), Ioan Gruffudd (Tony Blair), Toby Jones (Karl Rove), Thandie Newton (Condaleeza Rice), and Jeffrey Wright (Colin Powell). If this doesn't sell this film to you, I don't know what would. All of these actors were so absolutely brilliant that I almost forgot that they were actors and not the actual people. And then there was Josh Brolin. Wow. To be able to play such an interesting character over a span of 40 years with such authenticity is sheer, undeniable brilliance. Stefanie (who I saw this film with) had the same reaction as me—by the end, we were convinced that we were watching Dubya and not Brolin. Amazing, amazing, amazing acting. I cannot say enough about the whole cast, and especially about Brolin.

Besides the great acting and the high level of realism, I also love the flashback method of storytelling (as I always do) and the clever, clever score. The flashbacks attempted to parallel his early life with how he behaved as president. He was (apparently) a wild, alcoholic, irresponsible boy who couldn't hold down a job and was an embarrassment to George Sr. He decided to get it together and go into the family business by running for the House of Representatives, but he was "out-Texased" by the democratic candidate. Then somehow he becomes governor of Texas, and then God calls him to run for president. (H.W. didn't want him to run for governor and overshadow his brother Jeb, who he seemed to be much prouder of.) You feel bad for poor W. But at the same time, you recognize that trying to prove oneself to one's father is a terrible motivation for becoming president and that this man was not qualified for the job. (Kind of like another politician whose primary experience is as a state governor...)

Then there was the music. There was an interesting arrangement of the "Battle Hymn of the Republic" playing in the background when Bush and his cabinet are in a meeting to decide whether or not they're going into Baghdad. It gave me goosebumps—and not the good kind. Especially when the cabinet took part in their customary prayer at the end of the meeting. There were also several uses of a chirpy song about Robin Hood, primarily when Bush was wandering around his ranch followed by a troop of his not-so-merry men (and Condoleeza). It fit perfectly, with all its lyrics about feared by the evil and loved by the good, added to its goofy sound.

I liked George H.W. Bush in this film. I never thought much about him before since he was president when I was too young to care, but based on this he wasn't so bad. I liked how they had him tell W. that he had disgraced the Bush family name. However, in case this is less than accurate, he says this in a dream that W. has. That way, the idea was introduced but not implied as fact. I thought that was very subtly clever.

The last thing I will mention is the ongoing baseball field scenes, which culminated with the excellently done final scene. Apparently, center field is where Bush is able to think the most clearly. (His most successful job is as a baseball team owner, in fact.) Whenever he is trying to make a tough choice, they show him zoning out and imagining himself into center field. The last scene shows a fly ball coming towards him, and he keeps looking for it and looking for it, but he never sees it again. And that was a perfectly executed simile, right there. It was also a great way to end it. No hopeful messages, no preaching via end titles, no scrambling to choose a good final scene that really happened... It was wonderful.

I would give this film a 5, but I just wish there was more in it. Obviously, time is an issue and it can't go on forever, but I wanted it to. And since this is my blog, I can take half a point off for leaving me wanting more!

Go see this film. And don't "misunderestimate" it!

Rating: 4.5