Category Archives: Romance

The Immigrant (2013)

0

Posted on by

The Immigrant

The Immigrant

1921. An innocent immigrant woman is tricked into a life of burlesque and vaudeville until a dazzling magician tries to save her and reunite her with her sister who is being held in the confines of Ellis Island.

2

This movie is loaded with atmosphere & mood, but not a lot more. It struck me as an excuse to feature Marion Cotillard in shot after pouty shot of her melancholy face. The story seems assembled around her, not always convincingly.

The surrounding cast was impressive, overall. Jeremy Renner, though, was woefully underutilized in a role that should have been pivotal but instead felt peripheral and superfluous.

From Argemaluco, a reviewer on IMDB:
“The Immigrant isn’t made with enough passion for us to plunge into the main character’s experiences, and it doesn’t have a concrete point besides of being a sample book of human suffering which should have been touching, but it isn’t.”

Worth seeing if you are a fan of the actors, but I wouldn’t say it is something to seek out.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 88%; Audience 61%
Vox AZ

Penny Serenade (1941)

0

Posted on by

Penny Serenade

Penny Serenade

As Julie prepares to leave her husband Roger, she begins to play through a stack of recordings, each of which reminds her of events in their lives together. One of them is the song that was playing when she and Roger first met in a music store. Other songs remind her of their courtship, their marriage, their desire for a child, and the joys and sorrows that they have shared. A flood of memories comes back to her as she ponders their present problems and how they arose.

One of my favorite tear-jerkers of all time, starring one of my favorite screen couples. “Penny Serenade” always puts me through the ringer, even though I have seen it a dozen or so times. It can still make me cry and, thankfully, it can still make me laugh.

The music-stirring-memories plot device makes for a lovely soundtrack, as well as our main characters’ meet-cute. We start the film knowing that Julie and Roger are ending their marriage. We learn through flashbacks everything they’ve faced and why they feel it is so hopeless now.

The cast is full of top-notch talent, the writing is solid, the direction stellar. As melodramatic a film as this, though, would have floundered with lesser performers in the main roles. Cary Grant is at his charming best, Irene Dunne could tell the entire story with just her face. Together, in this movie and others, they have a chemistry so winning, you can’t help but be drawn in to their world.

There are some standout scenes; baby’s first bath, Roger’s impassioned plea to the judge… However, it is the whole of the movie that makes it great.

If you enjoy an old movie now & then, and you don’t mind your companions seeing you cry, do yourself a favor and catch “Penny Serenade” It is available at many libraries – and even on YouTube.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 93%; Audience 74%

Speaking of the Cary Grant / Irene Dunne chemistry, I found this video that was made for a contemporary song, using some of the sweetest, kissiest moments from Penny Serenade

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

0

Posted on by

Lars and the Real Girl

Lars and the Real Girl

Lars (Ryan Gosling) and Gus (Paul Schneider) are the grown children of a father who died recently and a mother who died giving birth to Lars. But as brothers, they couldn’t be more different. While Gus lives in the family home and has a loving wife (Emily Mortimer) and a child on the way, Lars leads a more reclusive existence in the family’s garage, hiding in plain sight of his small, wintry hometown. Painfully shy and eccentric, Lars fails to recognize that his co-worker Margo (Kelli Garner) has a major crush on him, and he picks up on a casual reference made by his cubicle mate, who mentions a website where you can order life-sized, anatomically correct sex dolls. But instead of seeing a sex object, Lars sees in this doll a potential life partner and the only kind of social “peer” he can relate to. So Lars orders a doll, whom he names Bianca, and begins treating her with utmost gentlemanly respect — and as though she’s his real-life, flesh-and-blood girlfriend. As he begins bringing Bianca with him everywhere he goes, the townspeople have to find just the right balance between supporting Lars’ unusual romance and trying to introduce him to a more conventional partner. Lars and the Real Girl was written by Six Feet Under scribe Nancy Oliver and directed by Mr. Woodcock’s Craig Gillespie.

~ Derek Armstrong

 

I’ve been wanting to see this one for a while, but had a hard time ‘selling’ it to D. After all, “guy falls in love with a sex doll” doesn’t exactly scream quality entertainment. In this case, however, quality entertainment is exactly what we get.

The part of Lars seems written specifically for Ryan Gosling’s delivery; his quiet, quirky, charmingly unsure delivery brings Lars to life for viewers (much as Lars’ affection brings Bianca to life for the townspeople). His pain and growth really come through.

Kelli GarnerAlso particularly well cast is Margo (Kelli Garner, right), whose shy infatuation with Lars has you wishing for his recovery. The lengths to which sister-in-law Karin is willing to go in her attempts to reach Lars in his self-imposed bubble may have been less believably sweet if not for the deft portrayal of Emily Mortimer

The stand out in this very strong cast though was, for me, Patricia Clarkson as Dagmar. She is the doctor who treats “Bianca” in her physical ailments, and Lars in his emotional ones. The role is small and quiet … and absolutely vital. Through her we learn who Lars is and why he is in such pain. Through her (and the other ladies), Lars learns who he is and how to deal with his pain.

So, we have a movie about death, and pain, and sex-dolls…and I am going to recommend it to most of my friends. It is lovely and sweet and explores what relationships mean to us – with family, with friends, and with that special someone (or something?) to whom we give our heart.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 81%; Audience 83%

Enhanced by Zemanta

Safety Not Guaranteed (2012)

0

Posted on by

Safety Not Guaranteed

Darius is a young intern at a Seattle-based magazine and jumps at the chance to investigate the author of a classified ad seeking someone to travel back in time with. Along with Jeff, the staff writer, and Arnau, a fellow intern, the three go on a road trip to a coastal town. While Jeff just wants to chase after his high school crush and Arnau wants some kind of life experience, Darius spends her time with Kenneth, a man who believes that he has built a time machine. The closer they become and the more they understand about each other, the less clear it becomes if Kenneth is just crazy or if he actually is going to successfully travel back in time.

A quirky romp that occasionally seems unsure of its direction, which actually adds to its charm.

Don’t get your hopes up for a time-travelogue in a sci-fi, Dr Whovian tradition. There is more can-he-or-can’t-he than been-there-done-that, with an undercurrent of “why would you want to, what would you change?” It is fantastical without being flighty.

I don’t want to write any more of the story in this review, because you should meet these characters and learn their secrets as the writer intended. Every little detail I started to write risks revealing too much. Below, I have linked a couple of reviews that reveal more – so you can get your spoilers there if you choose.

I will simply say, it is a fun, fresh, amusing yarn. Worth your time if you enjoy independent films, quirky romantic comedies, or off-the-wall fantasies. My review would be in the 85% range, but I am limited by the rules I set when I created the Word of Mouth scale. Since I will only tell about 60% of my circle to watch this (there is some coarse language and sexual situations) it ends up as a 3 of 5 here. See the Rotten Tomatoes numbers for a more general idea.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 94%; Audience 84%

Enhanced by Zemanta

Ruby Sparks (2012)

0

Posted on by

Ruby Sparks

A novelist struggling with writer’s block finds romance in a most unusual way: by creating a female character he thinks will love him, then willing her into existence.

I think D picked this one based on star Paul Dano; everything we’ve seen him in, D has liked. This role of Calvin Weir-Fields seems written just for Dano (and it may have been, writer Zoe Kazan is his real-life live-in girlfriend). He perfectly inhabits the quirky, insecure genius. Kazan co-stars as Ruby Sparks, Dano’s leapt-off-the-pages infatuation.

The idea is not entirely original, but this presentation is fresh and fun. As the author writes and rewrites his dream girl, Kazan gives life to the phrase “be careful what you wish for”. Her portrayal of the perfect (and not so perfect) girl is strong, flitting easily through a range of emotions and behaviors.

Unfortunately, the film falls down a bit when we meet Calvin’s parents. The characters are so ridiculous and over-the-top, and the performances by Annette Benning and Antonio Banderas so silly, it distracts from the gentle silliness of the rest of the film.

Overall, though, the story and direction are charming. If you like romantic comedies, especially with an intellectual bent, this flick is worth your time.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 79%; Audience 79%

Enhanced by Zemanta

She Wants Me (2012)

0

Posted on by

She Wants Me

A neurotic writer working on his new film gets into a tricky situation when an A-list actress shows interest in the role intended for his girlfriend.

This movie was so small, despite having a couple of formerly big name stars (Hillary Duff, Charlie Sheen, Debra Jo Rupp, Wayne Knight…), that it seems no critics felt an inclination to review it. Going by the audience reaction on Rotten Tomatoes, those critics didn’t miss much.

I found it a little more appealing than that, but not much. Fairly disjointed, often absurd. I kept hoping it could become…something. Just when I would start to think it found its footing, up would pop an over-the-top, out of place scene to knock it off.

I wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to see this one, but if it ever shows up on cable late at night, and you are bored or suffering with insomnia, go ahead and give it a viewing.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics N/A; Audience 41%

Enhanced by Zemanta

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (2012)

0

Posted on by

Seeking a Friend for the End of the World

As an asteroid nears Earth, a man finds himself alone after his wife leaves in a panic. He decides to take a road trip to reunite with his highschool sweetheart. Accompanying him is a neighbor who inadvertently puts a wrench in his plan.

Apparently, the primary activities pursued by mankind when faced with their ultimate destruction are sex and drugs. Lots of drugs. Except for Dodge Pederson (Steve Carrell), who we are to see as so schlubby and milquetoasty he drowns his troubles with codeine-laced cough syrup.

Somehow, Dodge finds himself on a road trip with Penny (Keira Knightley) in search of a lost love. Anyone familiar with road trip movies knows the odd couple will eventually fall for each other. This couple’s differences should be insurmountable (despite the whole “end of the world” thing) but there is a sweet chemistry between Knightley and Carrell that draws you in.

There are a few laughs and some fun cameos, but for the most part this movie is just…blah. It isn’t bad, but it certainly isn’t ‘good’, either.

Can’t think of anyone I would particularly recommend it to, but can’t think of anyone whom I would advise to avoid it. Guess I’ll give it a 2 1/2 because that is middle of the road – which is exactly how this film left me feeling.


Rotten Tomatoes: Critics 55%; Audience 56%

Enhanced by Zemanta
1 2 3