All the Kings Men
Today, I saw All The King’s Men not to be confused with All The Presidents Men which is about the famed Deep Throat reporters Woodward and Bernstein. I don’t really know if they meant to make an allusion to the classic film although I assume that both movie tittles reference the popular Nursery rhyme. There are certain comparisons one could make to the Nixon presidency and the movie in fact also stars Sir. Anthony Hopkins who stared in Oliver Stone’s masterpiece Nixon. Regardless, the movie paints a powerful and moving tale of the former governor Huey Long.
The real surprise in this movie is not Sean Penn who does a remarkable job portraying the former Louisiana governor, but the encompassing role of Jack Burden played by Jude Law. While in the past I have said some mean things about Law and while I might want to hate him Law does an amazing job in pulling off a difficult role that requires more that good looks and a receding hairline. Law’s character of Jack Burden is steeped in all the oddities of Southern politics and southern life that one could come up with yet Law pulls it off without a hitch. He even manages to make the movies sometimes painful voice-overs flow naturally like the cool glass of lemonade on a hot southern Louisiana night. Law who couldn’t be more limey really impressed me. Clearly he has talent and not even I can deny that. Even Sir. Anthony Hopkins performance seems to pale in the light of Law’s performance. Don’t kid yourself, I mean Law is not playing a menatally disabled or someone physically unattractive. He is playing essentially himself just a southern Jude Law in a culture that I imagine could not be further from his uptight playboy life. Pretty much everyone else is neither amazing or unamazing. Kate Winslet is at best solid as desperate yet perplexing Anne Stanton. Mark Ruffalo? Enough said.
Anyways, you win this round Jude Law. Good job, but be warned. I am watching you, waiting for you to slip up. My advise to you: Don’t take Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow 2. No one needs the money that badly.
The real surprise in this movie is not Sean Penn who does a remarkable job portraying the former Louisiana governor, but the encompassing role of Jack Burden played by Jude Law. While in the past I have said some mean things about Law and while I might want to hate him Law does an amazing job in pulling off a difficult role that requires more that good looks and a receding hairline. Law’s character of Jack Burden is steeped in all the oddities of Southern politics and southern life that one could come up with yet Law pulls it off without a hitch. He even manages to make the movies sometimes painful voice-overs flow naturally like the cool glass of lemonade on a hot southern Louisiana night. Law who couldn’t be more limey really impressed me. Clearly he has talent and not even I can deny that. Even Sir. Anthony Hopkins performance seems to pale in the light of Law’s performance. Don’t kid yourself, I mean Law is not playing a menatally disabled or someone physically unattractive. He is playing essentially himself just a southern Jude Law in a culture that I imagine could not be further from his uptight playboy life. Pretty much everyone else is neither amazing or unamazing. Kate Winslet is at best solid as desperate yet perplexing Anne Stanton. Mark Ruffalo? Enough said.
Anyways, you win this round Jude Law. Good job, but be warned. I am watching you, waiting for you to slip up. My advise to you: Don’t take Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow 2. No one needs the money that badly.