Riddles Unsolved
So, it snowed the day my father's family planned on celebrating Christmas. We didn't get around to doing Christmas until January 15. That seemed pretty delayed at the time, but there are still Christmas trees all up and down my street, so I had no idea how long Christmas could hang around for.
It snowed again the day that I was supposed to celebrate my birthday with my family. We just wrapped that up tonight. (At The Cookery, mmmm.) It was a full 13 days after my birthday.
So, if I could classify how 2011/my 30th year is going so far, I'd say...slowly. Or that the year has been retarded, in the real sense of the word.
Suits me fine. I could stand to slow things down a little.
In the spirit of this newfound sense of being late with everything, here are some pictures from the many occasions where I made people celebrate my birthday. There are more on Flickr.
Blue Valentine: B-
I like the way that this movie only gave the story to us in little moments, but I'm not sure that the filmmakers knew enough of what happens in between those moments. It was really hard to get a read on Ryan Gosling's character-sometimes he seemed like a hipster, sometimes he seemed like just a lowlife, and it was hard to reconcile the two-and it made the leap that his character takes at the end seem more like it came out of nowhere. Michelle Williams' character was more fleshed out and I feel like I understood her arc better. Still, it seemed like way more time elapsed between the early parts of the story and the latter parts of the station than is really possible. It was well acted and everything, but if your movie is this spare, these details and ideas matter all the more.
Season of the Witch: C
I think Ron Perlman is Nicholas Cage's best accessory to date-they kind of play up what's goofy about the other, and in the best way possible. I like that Cage has taken an interest in medieval sorcery, although I'm not sure that this maximizes the potential of putting those two concepts together. It is a decided improvement on The Sorcerer's Apprentice, though, even if I couldn't get behind a stupid late-turn plot-twist that takes away all of the witch's awesomeness. We need more awesome-witch movies in this world, and fewer vampires.
Country Strong: C+
At first, I didn't think this was going to be Crazy Heart with sequins. I guess all of the high-heeled boots and Leighton Meester made me think it was going to be something brighter and more poppy. Instead, it was a brighter, poppier Crazy Heart with high-heeled boots and sequins and music that's not as good. (So, about 3/4 enjoyable.) It also has kind of backwards notions about love, success, and selling out. I liked seeing Gweyth Paltrow fake her way through the dancing, though.
Cold Weather: A-
I can see how this came about: People complained that "mumblecore" movies were too plotless, so grafting a mystery story onto one is the easiest way to create the impression of forward momentum without having to necessarily have it add up to anything. The thing is, it totally worked. This movie is full of great character moments-especially between the main character and his sister, who really talk to each other the way siblings do-but then they're in the context of this silly mystery story that leads them to buy pipes and quote Sherlock Holmes.
The Green Hornet: B+
There's humor and there's action in this movie, but I find that more than anything Michel Gondry's movies are very warm. That's always charming to me. Sure, Seth Rogen isn't much of an action here, and sure, Cameron Diaz doesn't do much at all. But I really enjoyed how they could make Rogen's character seem so totally annoying in one moment and then entirely pitiable the next, and I loved watching his friendship with Kato unfold. Plus, there were some pretty neat Gondry-esque tricks (which worked for me even though I didn't see it in 3D). More movies should be like White Stripes videos.
No Strings Attached: B-
First of all, I appreciate that, in this movie, it's the woman who has commitment issues and the man that wants a stable, monogamous relationship. I see what you did there, No Strings Attached. I also like how there are no smarmy exes lurking around the corners-the "Baxter" in this case is perfectly cute and they make her seem like a poor fit for Ashton Kutcher's character without making her seem unworthy of love. But, at its core, it's a very typical, straight-up-the-middle romantic comedy. Even the movie seems uninterested in the main plot sometimes-it's got a large (and largely superfluous) supporting cast that provides lots of diversion from the main goings-on. I mostly thought it was okay-who wants more scenes where Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher hem and haw over their relationship?-but it does make the whole thing a little fatty, as does some totally unnecessary backstory that makes up the first 20 minutes of the movie. Worse crimes have been committed in this genre, but it's no Win a Date with Tad Hamilton, that's for dang sure.
It snowed again the day that I was supposed to celebrate my birthday with my family. We just wrapped that up tonight. (At The Cookery, mmmm.) It was a full 13 days after my birthday.
So, if I could classify how 2011/my 30th year is going so far, I'd say...slowly. Or that the year has been retarded, in the real sense of the word.
Suits me fine. I could stand to slow things down a little.
In the spirit of this newfound sense of being late with everything, here are some pictures from the many occasions where I made people celebrate my birthday. There are more on Flickr.
Blue Valentine: B-
I like the way that this movie only gave the story to us in little moments, but I'm not sure that the filmmakers knew enough of what happens in between those moments. It was really hard to get a read on Ryan Gosling's character-sometimes he seemed like a hipster, sometimes he seemed like just a lowlife, and it was hard to reconcile the two-and it made the leap that his character takes at the end seem more like it came out of nowhere. Michelle Williams' character was more fleshed out and I feel like I understood her arc better. Still, it seemed like way more time elapsed between the early parts of the story and the latter parts of the station than is really possible. It was well acted and everything, but if your movie is this spare, these details and ideas matter all the more.
Season of the Witch: C
I think Ron Perlman is Nicholas Cage's best accessory to date-they kind of play up what's goofy about the other, and in the best way possible. I like that Cage has taken an interest in medieval sorcery, although I'm not sure that this maximizes the potential of putting those two concepts together. It is a decided improvement on The Sorcerer's Apprentice, though, even if I couldn't get behind a stupid late-turn plot-twist that takes away all of the witch's awesomeness. We need more awesome-witch movies in this world, and fewer vampires.
Country Strong: C+
At first, I didn't think this was going to be Crazy Heart with sequins. I guess all of the high-heeled boots and Leighton Meester made me think it was going to be something brighter and more poppy. Instead, it was a brighter, poppier Crazy Heart with high-heeled boots and sequins and music that's not as good. (So, about 3/4 enjoyable.) It also has kind of backwards notions about love, success, and selling out. I liked seeing Gweyth Paltrow fake her way through the dancing, though.
Cold Weather: A-
I can see how this came about: People complained that "mumblecore" movies were too plotless, so grafting a mystery story onto one is the easiest way to create the impression of forward momentum without having to necessarily have it add up to anything. The thing is, it totally worked. This movie is full of great character moments-especially between the main character and his sister, who really talk to each other the way siblings do-but then they're in the context of this silly mystery story that leads them to buy pipes and quote Sherlock Holmes.
The Green Hornet: B+
There's humor and there's action in this movie, but I find that more than anything Michel Gondry's movies are very warm. That's always charming to me. Sure, Seth Rogen isn't much of an action here, and sure, Cameron Diaz doesn't do much at all. But I really enjoyed how they could make Rogen's character seem so totally annoying in one moment and then entirely pitiable the next, and I loved watching his friendship with Kato unfold. Plus, there were some pretty neat Gondry-esque tricks (which worked for me even though I didn't see it in 3D). More movies should be like White Stripes videos.
No Strings Attached: B-
First of all, I appreciate that, in this movie, it's the woman who has commitment issues and the man that wants a stable, monogamous relationship. I see what you did there, No Strings Attached. I also like how there are no smarmy exes lurking around the corners-the "Baxter" in this case is perfectly cute and they make her seem like a poor fit for Ashton Kutcher's character without making her seem unworthy of love. But, at its core, it's a very typical, straight-up-the-middle romantic comedy. Even the movie seems uninterested in the main plot sometimes-it's got a large (and largely superfluous) supporting cast that provides lots of diversion from the main goings-on. I mostly thought it was okay-who wants more scenes where Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher hem and haw over their relationship?-but it does make the whole thing a little fatty, as does some totally unnecessary backstory that makes up the first 20 minutes of the movie. Worse crimes have been committed in this genre, but it's no Win a Date with Tad Hamilton, that's for dang sure.