Twenty-five to go
Once again, many weeks late. Worst.
#73: Closed Circuit - A high-profile terrorism case unexpectedly binds together two ex-lovers on the defense team - testing the limits of their loyalties and placing their lives in jeopardy. [imdb]
I saw this because it was a million degrees that weekend and it was the only thing of interest at a good time that I hadn't seen. Also, I like Rebecca Hall. She was as lovely to watch as always, but there really wasn't much to the movie. It was plotty but unremarkable. It felt weirdly edited, too, like were were missing some pieces. They had courtroom scenes with wigs, which is always enjoyable. That's all I have to say about that one.
#74: Don Jon - Jon Martello is a strong, handsome, good old fashioned guy. His buddies call him Don Jon due to his ability to "pull" a different woman every weekend, but even the finest fling doesn't compare to the bliss he finds alone in front of the computer watching pornography. [rottentomatoes]
On to more recent things! JGL's big screen directorial debut is an entertaining, if unsurprising, movie. By that, I just mean it goes where you expect it to, but the broad comedy of the characters makes it a fun ride. You do need to prepare to see a lot of porn, though; mostly boobs. It is heavily sampled.
Scarlett Johansson was the stand-out player for me. She melts into her role as Jon's girlfriend and gives the movie more life than had someone else taken the role (the film equivalent of a high WAR, yay baseball). It is, however, silly that various reports about this movie are portraying her as equal in role to JGL, because the story is really all about Jon and his journey from naive and kind of awful to self-aware human being.
#75: Prisoners - When Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts. But just how far will this desperate father go to protect his family? [imdb]
This was one of the year's bigger surprises. The cast and trailers certainly indicated this movie would be an above-average thriller, but they didn't indicate just how above-average. It's more complex and twisty than I expected by far. It's what happens when the A-list makes a cops and kidnapping movie. Everyone in it was excellent. There were a couple of points where I was annoyed because I felt like characters weren't making obvious connections, but there were more things that completely surprised me. It's not perfect, but there's an awful lot to like about Prisoners.
#73: Closed Circuit - A high-profile terrorism case unexpectedly binds together two ex-lovers on the defense team - testing the limits of their loyalties and placing their lives in jeopardy. [imdb]
I saw this because it was a million degrees that weekend and it was the only thing of interest at a good time that I hadn't seen. Also, I like Rebecca Hall. She was as lovely to watch as always, but there really wasn't much to the movie. It was plotty but unremarkable. It felt weirdly edited, too, like were were missing some pieces. They had courtroom scenes with wigs, which is always enjoyable. That's all I have to say about that one.
#74: Don Jon - Jon Martello is a strong, handsome, good old fashioned guy. His buddies call him Don Jon due to his ability to "pull" a different woman every weekend, but even the finest fling doesn't compare to the bliss he finds alone in front of the computer watching pornography. [rottentomatoes]
On to more recent things! JGL's big screen directorial debut is an entertaining, if unsurprising, movie. By that, I just mean it goes where you expect it to, but the broad comedy of the characters makes it a fun ride. You do need to prepare to see a lot of porn, though; mostly boobs. It is heavily sampled.
Scarlett Johansson was the stand-out player for me. She melts into her role as Jon's girlfriend and gives the movie more life than had someone else taken the role (the film equivalent of a high WAR, yay baseball). It is, however, silly that various reports about this movie are portraying her as equal in role to JGL, because the story is really all about Jon and his journey from naive and kind of awful to self-aware human being.
#75: Prisoners - When Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts. But just how far will this desperate father go to protect his family? [imdb]
This was one of the year's bigger surprises. The cast and trailers certainly indicated this movie would be an above-average thriller, but they didn't indicate just how above-average. It's more complex and twisty than I expected by far. It's what happens when the A-list makes a cops and kidnapping movie. Everyone in it was excellent. There were a couple of points where I was annoyed because I felt like characters weren't making obvious connections, but there were more things that completely surprised me. It's not perfect, but there's an awful lot to like about Prisoners.