Thursday, July 22, 2010

What was the best one you saw?

In the mood to chat movies today.  I've seen some great ones lately.  And it was about time.  I've been having a long dry spell and have seen some real lousy ones, but I broke it a few weeks ago with ONDINE.

I  know I mentioned this one in a previous post about movies I was looking forward to.  I was not disappointed.  Here is a fairy tale show with a down on his luck fisherman who brings up a beautiful woman in his nets one day.  His luck changes, and he starts to tell his daughter a story about the fisherman who caught a selkie in his nets.  The daughter, in a wheelchair, and on dialysis once a week, falls into the tale and knows the woman is for real.  Now, I won't tell you the ending, but suffice, it went exactly as it should.  A sweet tale that will make you smile.  And I've never been one for Colin Farell (yes, yes, don't give me those looks) but he nailed this role, and looked mighty sexy doing it, too, with his long scruffy hair, bushy thick brows, and unintelligible speech.  Whew!  I am definitely buying this one on DVD when it come out.

I saw DESPICABLE ME and I tell you, it spoke to me as a writer.  It reminded me that the best stories make the heroes sacrifice, even the anti-heroes.  Give the hero something he wants more than anything (in Gru's case, he wants to steal the moon), and then, make him have to sacrifice that want to, in turn, win something even greater (even though the hero doesn't believe that thing is greater at the time).  The mix of enterprising, evil villain and the three orphan girls was delicious.  I love Agatha and her obsession with unicorns.  "It's so fluffy I'm gonna die!".  And the minions!  A real cute show, with a sweetness that surprised me.

TOY STORY 3 knocked it out of the park for me.  I love that my kids have grown up with this movie trilogy.  I fell in love with Buzz LightYear, and I still love the plastic dude.  But my favs are the aliens.  "Oooo, the claw."  I can't imagine any mother of college age kids saw this movie and didn't cry (probably fathers, too).  Pixar knows how to write story and character.  'nuf said.

Now the show everyone is talking about, INCEPTION.  Have you seen it?  I don't want to give any spoilers, but if you have seen it, then you've probably searched for someone to chatter with about it, and if you haven't seen it, I'm sure you've seen the chatter everywhere online.  It really was something to see.  Probably not the newest or even greatest ever made, but certainly something that kept my attention, fascinated me, and gave me a great respect for the creative mind of Christopher Nolan.  The movie assumed we viewers are smart, and did not dumb itself down, or slow down, for us to catch up.  I liked that.  Another great show for writers, I thought, because it is all about the idea, and what the imagination does with that idea.

Next up?  I can't wait for SALT!  I need an Angelina Jolie fix.  And I'm loving Liev Schreiber in movies lately, too.

So what's the best movie you've seen lately?
Michele

16 comments:

Unknown said...

Michele, I haven't seen Ondine, but with your recommendation, I will! sounds wonderful. And Colin Farrel is an amazing actor. Plays against type quite a bit.

I saw and liked The sorcerer's Apprentice, though I'll admit my expectations were low. I couldn't help wishing they had cast a different actor as the"apprentice," though the guy was actually quite good in the role. I just kept thinking "Shia LeBoef would have knocked this one out of the park!"

I've been reading a lot lately-- is it just me or are writers and Hollywood both having trouble coming up with endings that don't seem like a cop out? The ending of Inception was sooooo unsatisfyling to me. No question about it for me. . . and I wasn't happy with the choice the writer and director made. sigh. I'll just have to re-write it in my own head.

krisgils33 said...

I don't see too many movies without my daughter in tow and we've only seen a total of 2 this summer. But both have been well worth it: Toy Story 3 and Despicable Me. They were both completely entertaining for any age.

Rula Sinara said...

I recently saw Remember Me, with Robert Pattinson, Pierce Brosnan, and the blonde actress from LOST (sorry, can't recall her name). It's an incredible movie, but a major tear jerker. Pattinson is really great in it.

Michele Hauf said...

Betina, I will now see Apprentice on your rec. I love Nick Cage in most anything he does, and it looks like a fun movie, but the mediocre reviews have been keeping me away. Must go this weekend!

And yes, I think you came to the same conclusion I did with the end of Inception. Though my son argues for the other solution, I just don't see it. Someone had wondered if a sequel was planned to show more of Ken Watanabe's corporate rise. Not sure how that one would work.

krisgill33, don't you love that the animated movies speak to adults as much as to kids nowadays? Makes it a little less embarrassing for me to go to them alone. ;-)

Rula, that's awesome about Remember Me. I love tear jerkers. Though I wish I'd remember to bring kleenex. The hubby's shirt is a sorry second choice.

Kathleen Eagle said...

I don't know, Michele. I love Colin Farrell, almost never like Cage--although I'm curious about "Sorcerer's Apprentice," and I can see him in this role. The grands loved "Despicable Me," but I didn't see it with them. I'm up for "TS3". And "Ondine," of course. Thanks for the recs!

Terry Odell said...

It's Netflix for us. I'm so fed up with the commercials, the coming attractions, and all the non-movie stuff. Plus, now that we're living up in the mountains, the nearest theater is about 15 miles away and has two screens, so choices are limited.

I know we went to a few theater movies before we left Orlando last March, but for the life of me, I can't remember what they were.

Michele Hauf said...

Hey, Kathy, at least you got the grandkids as an excuse to go see the kiddie movies!

Terry, the previews are getting outrageous. I wondered if they were a full twenty minutes before Toy Story. And then the obligatory short animated flick that precedes the actual movie. It's a wonder kids don't fall asleep!

KylieBrant said...

Michele, I'm writing down some of these. When I get back from RWA I'm going to treat myself by calling a friend who likes movies as much as I do and going to three in a row, LOL! I'm lucky to get dh to a movie 4 times a year, and I do love to go.

We've been doing videos lately but nothing great. Saw Brooklyn's Finest, a good message of stepping over to the dark side, and to a lesser extent redemption for two different characters. Saw Green Zone with Matt Damon (very good, but no Bourne!). Finally saw Crazyheart, which was good. And saw Valentine's Day (my hubby's pic) which was cute and thoroughly predictable.

Michele Hauf said...

Kylie, I saw Green Zone and liked it, but felt it could have been more, for some reason. Just love Damon in anything.

Anyone see A Single Man? WIth Colin Firth as a gay man mourning his dead lover. A beautiful film, that I did like, but it somehow left me unsatisfied. Maybe because of the trick ending.

LSUReader said...

I saw Toy Story 3 with my grandson, and loved it. Perfect ending for that trilogy.

catslady said...

I'm hoping to see Inception this weekend. We don't go to the movies too often so I'm excited over this one. Hoping to see it in IMAX too lol.

Anonymous said...

Definitely the best movie lately was The Girl who Played with Fire

Amy J. Fetzer said...

I enjoyed Sorcerer's Apprentice, but agree that Shia LeBeouf would have been a better choice. I saw The A Team with my sons. If you were a fan of the show, the movie does not disappoint. Loved the opening segment. Robin Hood with Russel Crowe was terrific and a history buff, its the most logical telling of the legend. It must be seen once on a big screen to get the full effect of all the historical detail. Crowe's not hard on the eyes, either.

Helen Brenna said...

I haven't seen any really good movies lately, Michele - I'm still stuck where you were because I'm obviously not current.

Must get to a theater!

Helen Brenna said...

Oh, meant to add that I think Colin Farrell has really grown into himself. I like him SO much these days.

Sheree said...

"Toy Story 3" was the best. Of course, having Totoro perform his famous slowly widening smile was an added bonus.