review Archives - Page 12 of 16 - Ramblin' with Roger

Movie Review: The Savages

Carol and I went to see the new movie The Savages, starring Laura Linney and Philip Seymour Hoffman, two of my favorite actors, back on December 29 at The Spectrum Theatre in Albany. Then we got in the car to pick up Lydia from Grandma and Grandpa’s house in Oneonta. When we got home, I flipped on Ebert & Roeper. Roeper and New York Times film critic A.O. (Tony) Scott were giving their Top 10 Picks for 2007. Number 9 on Scott’s list was The Savages, which he described as a “comedy.” A comedy?

The story is about a couple adult children at opposite ends of New York State, Wendy Savage (Linney) in NYC and brother Jon (Hoffman) in Buffalo, forced to deal with their estranged father (Philip Bosco), now in decline, as well as each other. Hilarity does not ensue, but the movie does have quite a few comic moments. The story, on the surface, could be both conventional and depressing; the fact that it is neither is due to the fine screenplay by Tamara Jenkins and the main actors, who were – how do I put it? – specifically Wendy and Jon.

Of course, a viewer also brings himself or herself to the screening, and I could not help but notice that the architecture of Buffalo was noticeably upstate New York; the movie was filmed in the Buffalo area, NYC and Arizona. Also, I couldn’t help but recall disagreements one of my sisters and I had about my father’s end of life issues.

Still, I enjoyed this film immensely. I’ll say again – it’s NOT a downer, but an affirmation of life, which sounds corny, and I don’t care. However, I do think the title is weak; it suggests a much different film from that offered.

It’s rated R, largely for language, a couple tame sex scenes and an early scene which I won’t describe, except to say it’s not violent. An R rating covers a lot of ground, I’m reminded. My wife went to see The Kite Runner the day before, and she found that PG-13 movie far more disturbing than The Savages.

ROG

MOVIE REVIEW: Sicko

I like Michael Moore. He was kind enough to put my name on his first film, the flinty Roger and Me, which I enjoyed, except for the bunny scene. I also watched his television show, TV Nation and even own a video of it. The cartoon sequence in Bowling for Columbine I thought showed a fascinating breakdown about race in America. And, of course, there was Fahrenheit 9/11, which people particularly loved or hated.

When Carol and I were about to see his latest film, Sicko in late July, I mentioned this to a lunch buddy of mine, who is considerably more right-of-center than I (she voted for GWB twice more than I did, because “he’s a Christian”). She replied, “HE (Moore) is a sicko!” I was reminded yet again what a polarizing character Michael Moore is for some people.

Yet, if she gave it a try, I think she might find the new movie Sicko compelling, in spite of herself. Certainly, I think Moore made a deft move by concentrating on the 250 million people who (allegedly) have health coverage, rather than the 50 million that don’t. You’ll laugh at the absurdity of the system we’ve been saddled with – one more thing to blame on Richard Nixon, I discovered. You’ll cry with the insurance company official whose decision not to treat lead to a man’s death (yes, I saw it in the previews, and it still got to me). You’ll get more than a little ticked off. This is propaganda, of course, but persuasive propaganda.

Certainly, my view of the upcoming (ongoing) Presidential race has been colored by seeing this film. I want to see what solutions the candidates have to address a system that, it seems, can’t be easily fixed by more money being poured into the pockets of the insurance industry.

I worked as a customer service rep for an insurance company back in the late 1980s, so I believe these horror stories. I will write on this soon.
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Lefty Brown’s podcast on Sicko and our political process. And Gordon’s podcast on Sicko.
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Video:
At the Variety screening of the docu “Sicko,” director Michael Moore chats about bringing Americans together to fight a common enemy: the nation’s declining health care system. (And if that link doesn’t work, try this one).

More videos at Brightcove.com
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When Jane Wyatt died last year, a surprising number of people said to me, “I heard Ronald Reagan’s first wife died.” And I had to correct them.

NOW, Jane WYMAN, Ronald Reagan’s first wife has died.

Incidentally, the location I found the picture indicated that it is in the public domain.
ROG

MOVIE REVIEWS: Knocked Up and The Simpsons Movie

Sometimes, after eight years of marriage, my wife can still surprise me. In late July, the movie Knocked Up was showing only twice a day at the Spectrum Theater, at 1:10 and 9:40 pm, and I figured we’d just have to write the film off. No, she said, why don’t we get a babysitter and see the 9:40 pm show? On a Tuesday, a school night. This from a woman who generally wants to be in bed by 9:40 pm.

I was recounting that story to one of my racquetball mates. He told me that he had gone into the theater, watched Knocked Up for ten minutes, then walked out, disgusted.

Well, yeah, it IS one of that type of movies. Yet at its core, Judd Apatow’s film is VERY traditional – talk about “do the right thing” – and very sweet. Seth Rogan, who I’ve been following since the late, lamented Freaks and Geeks TV show, plays stoner Ben Stone, who, on a one-night stand, impregnates TV anchor Alison Scott, played by Grey’s Anatomy’s Katherine Heigl. Leslie Mann is Debbie, Alison’s sister, and Paul Rudd is Pete, Debbie’s somewhat beleaguered husband.

Ultimately, the drug-induced humor wore thin for me, but the relationship humor was often dead on. We laughed a lot, cringed a bit, but the funny stuff ultimately won out. My favorite line in the movie is when Alison says to her doctor, “But we have a birth plan!” which may not have the same effect if you haven’t been in a delivery room lately.

I was surprised what didn’t bother me: Heigl’s character bedding the nerdy guy here, just like Heigl’s Izzy Stevens slept with insecure George on Grey’s Anatomy.

Even more raucous than The 40-Year Old Virgin, which I liked a bit more, I’d recommend the film, but not to those easily grossed out.
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As for the Simpsons Movie, which I saw alone in mid-August at the Madison Theater (because my wife was out of town, and not interested anyway), it was what many people have already said; a pretty good extra long episode of the show. I did like Bart and Flanders’ relationship and Grandpa’s religious experience. I know a couple people who’ve worked for the EPA, so thought it rather funny that the agency could be so efficient. It was a knowing touch to make the current governor of California the President, since, constitutionally, he cannot be. But my favorite scene was Homer and Marge, alone save for those Disney animals; I laughed out loud.
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Note to Lefty: This is the real question:

ROG

TV REVIEW: The Bronx Is Burning

Because I’d finally caught up with almost everything else, over a two and a half week stretch recently, I managed to watch all eight segments of the ESPN miniseries The Bronx Is Burning, ostensibly about the New York Yankees’ 1977 World Series win, their first since 1962, despite the tension among Yankee owner George Steinbrenner, manager Billy Martin and outfielder Reggie Jackson. It was also about the .44-caliber killer known as Son of Sam, and the general decay of New York City.

I had a personal interest in this story, for I was living in Jamaica, Queens from May to September. I was hanging out partying late at night and was just a tad paranoid about Son of Sam, and I remember the screaming red-letter headlines on the New York Post when David Berkowitz was caught in August of 1977.

The production featured the actors in scenes, interspersed with footage of the era, both in the baseball scenes, and in the atmospheric segments about the blackout, the mayoral race between Ed Koch and Mario Cuomo (I voted for Cuomo, BTW).

The good things about this production: John Turturro as the Billy Martin, and I say that not because Turturro graduated from my alma mater of New Paltz, but because he seemed to embody, rather than imitate, the fiery manager. Erik Jensen as Yankee captain and catcher Thurman Munson. Kevin Conway, who plays Yankees Prez and GM, Gabe Paul; he doesn’t really look like Paul, but his caught-in-the-middle performance rang true. The great background pieces at the end of each episode featuring Jackson, Steinbrenner, Yankees Chris Chambliss and Fran Healey, Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, and Billy Martin’s son, Bill Jr. (Martin was killed in a one-car crash in Binghamton, NY – my hometown – on December 25, 1989.)

The so-so parts: Oliver Platt as Steinbrenner; he looked like Oliver Platt playing Steinbrenner. Joe Grifasi as Yogi Berra, who didn’t seem all that bright and was there to share Italian-American insults with Martin. Leonard Armond Robinson as Mickey Rivers, and whoever played Fran Healey were OK. The guys playing the cops in the Son of Sam investigation, featuring Dan Lauria (Wonder Years). The use of the real video, although seeing the cheesy ABC Sports logo was a hoot.

The not so hot parts: Daniel Sunjata as Reggie Jackson; it wasn’t just the look, it was the feel of the character. Most of the other supporting players, especially the women, were ciphers. The guy playing Lou Pinella looks nothing like him, while a press guy reminded me of Yankee pitcher Catfish Hunter. And most of all, the Son of Sam killings, which almost all involved a couple of Noo Yawkers babbling something to each other before they were shot by Berkowitz; they all felt the same.

So, it wasn’t great, it wasn’t awful. I’m glad I saw it because it was a good reminder of the era. If you rent the DVD, which will be out later this month, I have the sense that the extras will be more enjoyable than the core item.
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Here’s a weird TV thing: I was watching a rerun of Scrubs recently. The original episode aired on May 10, and was 40 minutes (more like 38). But when it was rerun in the last week or two, it was in the 30 minute slot. How did this work? Cuts. J.D. and Turk’s voice-over dialogue as they were driving away. Kelso’s dis of a woman his age or younger at a convention as too old. But mostly, the whole scene with J.D. and Turk at a lecture conducted by J.D.’s pregnant ex-girlfriend was broken in half in the original, with a “Busta move” piece of verbiage, but continuous in the repeat, sans “Busta move”. I wonder if both versions will show up on the DVD?

ROG

MOVIE REVIEW: Spider-Man 2

That’s right, the middle movie. I could hardly see the third film without having seen the second. And I saw it in a theater. Sort of.

At our vacation place in the Berkshires, there is a 40-seat theater in one of the buildings, showing some interesting-sounding films. As I mentioned, early in the week, Carol took Lydia to see Charlotte’s Web, but Lydia found the darkened theater experience too intense and so they bailed. The first Fantastic Four film was also showing that week, but it seemed that I should pick the movie I most wanted to see. I liked the first Spidey film and own it on VHS (pre-ownership of the DVD player), so on June 28, I head over to the movie theater.

In retrospect, it seemed almost predestined that I see the film on that day. The day before (June 27), it was Tobey Maguire’s 32nd birthday, and he appeared on Live with Regis and Kelly. I didn’t see that, but I did see the next day’s trivia question, which was asking for the name of Spider-Man’s alter ego. The contestant on the show muffed it, but anyone who’s worked in a comic book store, or has collected the four-color item MUST know Peter Parker. Moreover, the movie was showing on cable that week. TWICE I saw the scene when Mary Jane Watson says to Peter, “Don’t disappoint me.”

So, I get a tiny bag of free popcorn and sit in the theater with maybe a dozen people. And I’m liking the movie until six older people come into the room. It IS pitch black, except for the light from the screen, and they loudly make it known that it’s dark, all through that birthday party scene. I didn’t mind it so much when they were seeking their seats -though GETTING THERE ON TIME would have alleviated the problem – but their recapping (“Boy, it sure is dark in here – I had trouble finding my seat” AFTER they were all in place was REALLY annoying. I mean, SHUT. UP. ALREADY. I thought that, didn’t say it.

The rest of the film went down easy, with a very credible villain in Alfred Molina’s Doc Ock, the right amount of personal tension in Peter Parker’s life, especially vis a vis Mary Jane, great action sequences, and the continuing Harry Osborn thread. Great balance, great pacing.

Roger Ebert gave this film four stars. Entertainment Weekly gave the DVD release an A-, and put it on its list of Top 25 action films. Despite the early distraction, a very enjoyable film.

(And there was popcorn left at the end, so I took another tiny bag to go.)

ROG