Movie Review: Harry Potter 6 (Half-Blood Prince)

You know what the problem is with the Harry Potter movies? They've been coming out forever. By the time they all come out, a decade (give or take) will have gone by. There's nothing per se wrong with this, but it means that I never remember everything that happened before when I go to the theater for the current installment. I could fix the problem by watching them all again before each new release, but that would mean subjecting myself to the sketchiness of the early movies. I nearly fell asleep in the theater during the first one. I also don't own all of them (only movie 5). And reading the books in a marathon session beforehand, like my husband sometimes does, probably won't help either. Then I'll start focusing on all the little (and big) things they changed to translate the stories to film, which will also annoy me.

Leaving aside this fuzzy memory feeling, Harry Potter 6 was a good experience. The movie was exciting most of the way through (though it was a bit episodic), and Daniel Radcliffe turns in a solid performance. They got really lucky in casting him, since there wasn't a lot of evidence he could act in movie 1. He happens to have matured into a dependable performer.

Movie Review: Taken

This was an incredibly simple movie. The always watchable Liam Neeson plays a retired spy who left the business in order to spend more time with his teenage daughter (played by Maggie Grace). He reluctantly grants her permission to travel to Paris with a friend, even though he's nervous about her safety. Of course, it turns out that his fears were warranted, as his daughter and her friend are almost immediately kidnapped by a human trafficking/prostitution ring. The rest of the movie follows Neeson as he works to save his daughter.

There is nothing special about this movie. The action sequences are tight, but not groundbreaking; Neeson's performance is solid but not astonishing. However, at only 1.5 hours long, it doesn't wear out it's welcome, and it is clear that it doesn't have delusions of grandeur.

Movie Review: The Quiet American

I got this through Netflix. An interesting little film about a journalist in early 1950s Vietnam, before the French pullout. Michael Caine stars as the journalist Thomas Fowler stationed in Saigon, living with his Vietnamese mistress Phuong (Do Thi Hai Yen). Fowler's comfortable life is disrupted when an American aid worker, Alden Pyle (Brendan Fraser), arrives and begins to compete for Phuong's attentions. Pyle is idealistic and energetic, committed to defeating the communists in Vietnam and hoping to offer Phuong the marriage that Fowler cannot. This love triangle goes through a number of tense battles and then ends predictably in tears. Meanwhile, the war in Vietnam continues, and it appears that the French efforts against the communists are being supplanted by those of enterprising locals. But is unclear who is funding these new players...

Overall, I found the movie a bit odd but still thought provoking. The love story and the war sequences are not well-integrated, but it was interesting to see a film about the Vietnam conflict before large-scale American involvement. The book by Graham Greene upon which the movie was based was published in 1955, before all of that occurred. But given that this movie was released in 2002, my watching of it was colored by what I knew was going to happen in Vietnam during the 1960s.

Movie Review: Up

I saw this the past weekend. It's probably the best movie from 2009 I've seen so far. It also continues the Pixar streak: they haven't made a bad movie yet. This is an amazing achievement, and I keep thinking a clunker is coming, but somehow it doesn't. A Bug's Life was probably the weakest Pixar, and that's really saying something. Especially given the standard being set by other children's cartoons out there.

I was a bit skeptical of the premise for this film: man goes on a trip to South America by turning his house into an airship. Boyscout kid tags along. Sounds a bit wierd, right? But instead of being some crazy technicolor adventure, the movie turned out to be about aging, death, divorce, and finding joy in one's life, however one can. It was pretty heavy for a children's movie, which was evidenced by the confused questions some kids were whispering to their parents at the showing I attended. But despite that, all the kids I saw after the movie seemed happy and excited by the experience. I left the theater feeling the same way.

Movie Review: Star Trek

I wasn't super eager to see this one, but Mike was. So I went to see it last weekend. I watched Next Generation a lot for a couple years in grade school, but then I switched to police procedural shows and never looked back. Therefore, I just wasn't that interested in this movie. However, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked it.

What also made me skeptical about this movie was its director, JJ Abrams. I used to be a faithful watcher of his TV drama Alias, but that show had a drop off that began in Season 2 and ended in a spectacular crash and burn in Season 5. Really, it was embarrassing. Mike assured me that since Abrams was working within the confines of a 2 hour movie, there was no way it could get that out of hand. I was still hesitant. But you know what? Abrams did keep things under control. The movie plot was pretty simple (even though it involved time travel) and well-paced. I was afraid when that ball of "red matter" was revealed (longtime Alias fans will remember that annoying red ball of water stuff that was involved in many stupid plots), but that turned out not to be a problem.

Plus, Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto are great. I liked that Quinto's Spock seemed just a bit different from Leonard Nimoy's Spock. That makes sense, because they've had different life experiences. Sometimes time travel can get messy, with the main characters either worrying too much about changing events or thinking that they can't change anything because it's already done. This movie did neither. The characters accept that some things will change and make a new future. The result is fluid and freeing.

Movie Review: Wolverine

This was okay, but not as good as it could have been. The relationship between Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) and Sabertooth (Liev Schreiber) was interesting, and some of the other mutants on Wolverine's government special ops team (like Dominic Monaghan) were decent. Otherwise, we get a sequence of sometimes standard and sometimes super weird action and character moments. (What was up with the fat man boxing bit? Or the naked Wolverine running through the woods bit?) Gambit and Emma Frost don't add much, sadly. A bit of a waste.

Movie Review: State of Play

I saw this on Saturday. Mike, being a big fan of journalism movies (All the President's Men, Good Night and Good Luck, His Girl Friday, Zodiac) wanted to check it out. I definitely enjoyed it (Russel Crowe, Helen Mirren, Ben Affleck, and Rachel McAdams give great performances), but there was something lacking in the plotting. Mike described it as about 80% of the quality of Michael Clayton, and I would agree with that. It's not quite as amped up as Clayton, so you're not waiting for some one's car to blow up the entire time. Nor are the plot twists quite so twisty, and the ending just sort of putters out. The constant whining over the death of print newspapers is also a bit much, making the movie feel a little grumpy. Also, how in the world are we supposed to believe that Russel Crowe and Ben Affleck are close enough in age to have gone to college together? In real life about 8 years separate them, and Affleck has a perpetual twenty-something look to him. Overall, a tasty snack but not a full meal.

Movie Review: Hellboy II

I finally got to see this on DVD. I remember thinking that Hellboy I was a decent movie, but not great. This one is a step up from that. It's much more fantasy-driven, dealing with a war between elves and humans. As such, del Toro (who both wrote and directed the movie) has created a visually interesting world full of mystical creatures. There is much less action occurring in the real world (the streets and subway tunnels of NYC) and way more in fantasy locales (the Troll Market, the elves' throne room). The major issue is that the characterisations are a little flat. Hellboy himself remains interesting (the movie deals a bit with his constant struggle to fit in with humans) but his comrades aren't. At one point a main character has to decide whether to save Hellboy's life, and her struggle did not seem nearly as emotional as it ought to have been.

Movie Review: Watchmen

Although I avidly read comics, I have never gotten into Alan Moore. I have read a couple things by him (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, The Killing Joke), but I have never managed to get through his iconic stuff: Watchmen, V for Vendetta, etc. So bear that in mind.

I found this movie interesting, but too long for what it was. There were some beautiful, eye catching sequences (particularly the opening credits), but these were also very drawn out. I wasn't that interested in the characters, so I wasn't willing to wade through so much flashback and slow unraveling of the mystery. Really, the opening credits were the best part of the movie, which raised expectations, only to fail to meet them.

Best Picture Round-Up 2008

I know this is super late, but I did see all the Best Picture nominees before the Oscar ceremony. My thoughts, in brief:

Milk
Sean Penn gives a beautiful performance, as does Josh Brolin. The pacing was a little off (particularly during the portions dealing with the second boyfriend), but the ending was very powerful.

Frost/Nixon
A very simple, yet compelling film. The performances are tight. Ron Howard's direction is controlled and appropriate. I wouldn't expect any less from the director of Apollo 13, A Beautiful Mind, and Cinderella Man.

Slumdog Millionaire
A beautiful movie, though the game show framing mechanism is both creative and a little forced.

The Reader
My favorite of the 2008 Best Picture nominees. This film shows how personal pride leads one woman to destroy hundreds of lives. It's examination of German guilt for the Holocaust, both for individuals and the nation as a whole, is both fascinating and sobering.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Interesting, but way too long for what it was. I was surprised that the movie was framed by Hurricane Katrina. I suppose they felt they had to deal with that, given that the film is very much about New Orleans.

Blergh

Sorry I've been MIA for awhile. I'm getting married in June, and I have been working on my research agenda for my dissertation. That has pretty much sucked away any knitting time.

Knitting news:

But, I have managed to slowly keep plugging along on my shetland triangle. The pattern was originally written with about 8 repeats of the body chart, but I've done 14. I had to add all these repeats because the intended recipient, my mother, complained that the shawl was too small when I showed it to her in December with 8 repeats. I've put my foot down at 14, so I've now started the edging chart.

Movie news:

I did see a bunch of stuff over the past couple months.

Elizabeth: The Golden Age
I liked this movie, even though it was incredibly heavy handed. (We get it! Catholic=Bad! I can totally understand why some Catholics were offended by this movie. ) Nevertheless, Cate Blanchett really owned the role of Elizabeth. It's the strength of her performance that lifts the film from mediocrity.

In Bruges
This is an odd little film written and directed by the playwright Martin McDonagh. It follows in the tradition of many modern Irish plays, dwelling on themes of death, fate, and the plight of the working-man. (Admittedly, I'm basing this assessment after only having read one JM Synge play.) Imagine something depressing along those lines, then throw in a dose of ridiculous gun violence, cocaine, and midgets. The result is oddly funny and quite watchable. I haven't been able to take Colin Farrell seriously before, but he was quite good as the main character in this film. And for some reason Ciaran Hinds (Munich, There Will Be Blood, Persuasion) pops up for an uncredited cameo.

Once
This film is pretty weak in its plotting, but it's so short that it doesn't really matter. The story revolves around a Guy (Glen Hansard) and a Girl (Marketa Irglova) who run into each other on the streets of Dublin and decide to collaborate on a demo album. The Girl and the Guy both have a lot of emotional baggage that prevents them from acting on romantic feelings that are kindled over the course of the ensuing week. But the music they create does help both of them make something new out of their lives. The scene where they first play "Falling Slowly" is fantastic. That song was very deserving of its Oscar.

Elizabeth
I neglected to see this before I saw the sequel. In some ways, I'm glad of that, because this film was better, allowing me to end things on a higher note. The plot is hopelessly romanticised (even I could tell things were off, and I haven't read anything about Elizabethan history since sophomore year of college), and like the sequel, it boils everything into a Protestant v. Catholic brawl. Nevertheless, Cate Blanchett again delivers as Elizabeth, and Geoffrey Rush has some striking scenes as Francis Walsingham. I think Joseph Fiennes is largely wasted, but you can always watch Shakespeare in Love to make up for that. The one thing that I thought was really odd about the movie was its sometimes amateurish effects and subtitles. They used this huge, ugly, white lettering to tell us when the action moved to Scotland or The Vatican. And there is one scene where someone gets beaten to death that looks like it's from a low-rent war movie. This doesn't gel well with the otherwise rich atmosphere.

Iron Man
Robert Downey Jr. is the man. I don't even like Tony Stark as a character, and I still had a great time watching this one. (Note: I actually saw this on May 3rd, even though this entry is dated April 30th--I went back and edited this in.)

Oscar Wrap-Up, 2007 Best and Worst Movies

So I sat through the entire Oscars ceremony last night. I was pleased with a number of the awards results, from the expected (best actor Daniel Day-Lewis, best supporting actor Javier Bardem, best picture No Country for Old Men, best score Atonement) and the unexpected (best supporting actress Tilda Swinton, best editing Bourne Ultimatum, best visual effects The Golden Compass). I thought Jon Stewart did okay, especially considering that he only had a week to prepare with his writing staff.

Which brings me to my 2007 Best and Worst: Movies list. Of the Oscar nominees, the only film I planned to see but didn't was Elizabeth: The Golden Age (I have netflixed it though). Of the other movies, I would still like to see Before the Devil Knows You're Dead and The Great Debaters. I'm going to admit that I'm voting a bit more with my heart than my head here. I ranked some stuff pretty high, even though I saw more artistic merit in other movies. This is what I enjoyed the most.

The Best:
1) Michael Clayton. I loved a lot of movies from 2007, but this is the only one I didn't have ANY reservations about. Acting, script, design, direction...this movie has it all. Plus, it stars George Clooney.

2) The Bourne Ultimatum. This isn't a particularly cerebral film, but it is well-written, directed, and acted. And the assassination in the London train station scenes are as good a suspense/action sequence as any I've seen. I like that someone as talented as Paul Greengrass (United 93) is willing to make something so enjoyably popcorn-y. This is sure to become an action movie favorite. Plus, it stars Matt Damon.

3)3:10 to Yuma. Like Bourne, this is also a fairly straightforward film. But also like Bourne, it's incredibly well-made and very enjoyable. Russel Crowe and Christian Bale work wonderfully together.

4) Ratatouille. Pixar continues its streak of beautiful, lovable, quality family films. It's not quite Finding Nemo, but it's close. As soon as I finished watching this one, I put it back in the DVD player and watched it again.

5) No Country for Old Men. I still have reservations about the ending, but this movie was impeccably executed. The showdowns between Javier Bardem and Josh Brolin are so good, that you can almost forgive anything else.

6) Atonement. Unlike No Country or There Will Be Blood, this is an example of a "classic" drama, made very much in an older mold. However, due largely to its interesting plot structure and kinetic direction, the film avoids feeling dated. I wish they had given Keira more to do (she comes off as annoying, largely due to the lack of material she has to work with), but James McAvoy and Saoirse Ronan are excellent.

7) Eastern Promises. It's all about Viggo Mortensen. End of story.

8) Gone Baby Gone. The script lacked some zest, relying too much on voice-over narration, but I was very taken with Ben Affleck's direction and Casey Affleck's performance. I'm looking forward to future projects from them.

9) Zodiac. A beautiful ensemble piece, though a bit drawn out. Mark Ruffalo totally works his ridiculous haircut, too. I was a bit surprised it got totally ignored this award season, though it was probably released too early in 2007.

10) Juno. A little too artificially cute for me, but Ellen Page is amazing. Plus, who doesn't like JK Simmons?

Stuff I liked but had some issues with: American Gangster, Charlie Wilson's War, Harry Potter 5, Across the Universe, Shoot 'em Up, The Golden Compass, Live Free or Die Hard, Oceans 13, There Will Be Blood.

The Worst:
1) Spider-Man 3. Painful. May be a franchise killer, though Marvel is planning to try again.

2) Shrek The Third: Eh.

3) Breach: A waste of Chris Cooper.

4) Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End: It lost a lot of the joy of the previous two installments. It felt as if they just wanted it over.

5) The Seeker: The Dark is Rising: Very disappointing. It was so flat.

6) The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford: There was a good movie in this film, but it's hard to find in the 2 hours 40 minutes running time. It's really a shame, given that Casey Affleck and Brad Pitt are quite good.

At the speed of light

So Mike and I have been pushing really hard to see a bunch of movies before the Oscars. We started January with the following list, and have crossed a number of them off:

Atonement
Elizabeth: The Golden Age
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
American Gangster
Ratatouille
3:10 to Yuma
No Country for Old Men
There Will be Blood
Eastern Promises.

This past holiday weekend we saw 3:10 to Yuma, No Country, and Jesse James. It was a sort of a "western weekend."

3:10 to Yuma

Of the three, this is the one I enjoyed the most. Christian Bale plays a rancher, Dan, struggling to provide for his family. Dan is a Civil War veteran, and he's never really recovered from that experience. Russell Crowe plays a violent bandit, Ben Wade, who is captured in Dan's hometown. Dan volunteers to transport Ben to the 3:10 train to Yuma prison in exchange for much-needed cash. But, as a result, Ben's gang of theives is hunting Dan, trying to free their leader. The story is reasonably simple, and it ends just like you would expect. However, I was very impressed by the acting of the two leads, Bale and Crowe. Bale's character is a bit of a pathetic loser, but Bale makes sure we don't write him off. Crowe's Ben Wade is a scary psycho (there is one scene where he kills a guy with a fork), but he's also a bit of a dandy (Crowe sports a purple striped waistcoat throughout most of the film). Crowe meshes those disparate qualities together very effectively. These two men are so different, yet they manage to come to an understanding in the end. The final sequence is a keeper. (PS--Firefly fans, this movie features Alan Tudyk, aka Wash.)


No Country for Old Men

I'll admit that I was too scared to go see this movie when it first came out. The trailers alone were close to giving me nightmares. But after hearing so many good things from friends, I decided to suck it up and head to the theater. I'm glad I did. Yes, there were some violent parts, but the movie didn't dwell upon the gore. It's much more of a suspense piece, stringing you along in anticipation of something awful happening, instead of showing lots of awful things happening (though the final body count is really high). Javier Bardem is as good as everyone says he is, and I was equally impressed with Josh Brolin (I'm actually surprised he didn't get more awards buzz). And the dry wit conveyed by Tommy Lee Jones tops it all off. My only complaint: what is up with the ending? I realize that the Coen brothers sort of backed themselves into a corner, in that a movie like this has to end with a big shootout, but they probably didn't want to be so conventional. But instead of that type of ending, we get a drawn-out sequence where people meditate on the meaning of life. These scenes aren't bad, but they fit poorly with the rest fo the film.

The Assasination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford

No need for a plot synopsis here. The title does say it all. The only thing I would add is, "... Framed by Lots of Arty Shots of Blowing Grass," after "Ford." I'm still a little confused by this movie. The actual assasination scene was interesting and well-constructed, but in order to get there we have to wade through lots of really random plot, somewhat stupid voice-overs (please, don't describe to the audience what you're already showing on the screen), and, well, grass. Seriously, the film crew must have spent days sitting in a hayfield somewhere. The acting is really good, led by Brad Pitt (as James) and Casey Affleck (as Ford). I just don't understand all the other artistic choices.

Mitten Number One

I finished the first of my cabled mittens yesterday and set it out to block. I really like this pattern, despite the fact that it has some typos in it. But they were pretty easy to figure out, and the result is very cute. I sort of want a hat to match these, but I don't know if this cable pattern would translate well onto a hat. I'll have to think on it. I could always resort to my favorite cabled hat pattern, the Basic Cable from SNBN.

In other news, Mike and I have been trying to catch up on some more movies before the Oscars. First, there was Juno. I loved the quirkyness of this movie, but after a while the crazy dialogue got to me. You can tell that this is Diablo Cody's first film writing effort because she tried to cram way too much nonsensical hipster-speak and oddball situations into the script. However, the basic characterizations are very strong, and all of the actors, led by Ellen Page, do an excellent job. This is the second movie directed by Jason Reitman that I have enjoyed, following 2005's Thank You for Smoking. I am looking forward to his next project.

We also saw Eastern Promises on DVD this past weekend. In some ways, this movie didn't have a story arc at all. We just follow around a bunch of Russian mobsters for awhile. There isn't much resolution in the ending. However, I liked that there wasn't an epic storyline. This movie had no chance of topping all of the great gangster films out there, so it doesn't even try. Instead, it gives us a couple interesting characters and lets us explore their lives for a bit. Viggo Mortensen is amazing, as always. But be prepared for some graphic violence.

Two Movie Reviews

As I did last year, I'm going to hold off on picking my best of 2007 movies until I've watched everything I've got in my pre-Oscar queue. I crossed another one off my list this past weekend: Atonement. I was very curious to see this movie, because I really enjoyed director Joe Wright's last effort, 2005's Pride and Prejudice. Atonement did not dissapoint. You've probably figured out most of the basic story from the many commercials that were playing around Christmas: a young girl (Saoirse Ronan) witnesses something scandalous which she doesn't understand, and promptly tells people about it. As a result, two young lovers (played by Keira Knightley and James McAvoy) are separated, and they remain apart through the tumult of WWII in England. I was prepared for the movie to be really sad, which it was, but I was also struck by the quality of the film. It is interestingly constructed, jumping forwards and backwards in time (this reminded me a lot of Brian Michael Bendis's writing). The acting is tight, led by Ronan and McAvoy (though Knightley got top billing, hers is actually more of a supporting role). The design was excellent. I particularly liked the sound design and score, which cleverly incorporates typewriter sounds at key moments. Overall, it was a beautiful, well-made film. I'm looking forward to Wright's next project.

The other movie I saw recently was Shoot 'Em Up. This is a short, violent, ridiculous movie about a "Mr. Smith" (Clive Owen) trying to protect a baby from some bad guys. Really, that is most of the plot. It's just an excuse to show tons of stunts, which are actually quite cool. It's an 80 minute movie, more than half of which is gun fights. It's got every iteration: gun fight in the street, gun fight in a car chase, gun fight on a rooftop, gun fight in a plane, gun fight while skydiving, gun fight in a gun factory.... Don't expect anything cerebral, but it's fun for what it is.

New year, new movie reviews

Happy New Year!!!!!

It's that time of the year where I frantically try to watch a bunch of movies before the Oscars. Although, since the writer's strike is still on, it's not clear if there will be a televised ceremony this year.

Here are a few things I caught recently. I'm hoping to see Atonement and Juno soon, also.

The Golden Compass
I have to admit that I have never read the series of books upon which this movie is based. I have listened to Mike and my sister talk about them, so I know some of the general plot. With that disclaimer, I thought this movie was good but not great. They clearly threw a lot of money into the project. The visual designs were excellent. But, it seemed as if they weren't sure what parts of the book they wanted to focus on, which left the plot really muddled. Although, the armored polar bear fight was awesome.

Charlie Wilson's War
This film was written by Aaron Sorkin, directed by Mike Nichols, and stars Tom Hanks (as Charlie Wilson). The result is slick and professional. That is both a strength and a weakness. For being a movie about the end of the Cold War and continuing tension in the Middle East (particularly Afghanistan), it has a surprisingly light and detached feel. You almost feel as if the entire thing was made up. One of the best sequences, where Congressman Wilson is holding a meeting with a CIA officer (Phillip Seymour Hoffman) while simultaneously writing a memo with his staff, is zany and brilliantly executed. But it's really staged and fake given the gravity of the base material. This mood was probably a conscious choice, but it did come off as a bit weird to me. We, as an audience in 2007, know that the story of Afghanistan does not yet have a happy ending.

Zodiac
I saw this on DVD. I was a bit afraid to watch it, because I am not a fan of gore. I feared the movie was really going to dwell on the Zodiac murders. However, that is not the case (though there is one particularly graphic scene). Instead, the movie focuses on the men investigating these killings, played admirably well by Jake Gyllanhall, Robert Downey Jr., Mark Ruffalo, and Anthony Edwards (who is, of course, one of my faves from his time on ER). Roger Ebert compares this movie to All the President's Men, and I agree with him (though Zodiac is not as good as AtPM). My one qualm is that the shift from when the investigation is handled by the police (Ruffalo and Edwards) to when it is handled by one journalist (Gyllanhall) creates a marked break in the film. It's almost as if they are two separate movies. My guess is this happened because the movie is trying to follow the way the investigation evolved in real life.

Movie Review: Michael Clayton

I saw Michael Clayton yesterday. It is an impressive movie. Although it deals with a corrupt corporation, it's not trying to send a message about corporate America. It's just a well-crafted business/legal thriller. The leads, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, and Tom Wilkinson, give understated and realistic performances that form the core of the film. If they weren't there, the movie probably wouldn't work. This is the directorial debut of Tony Gilroy, who also wrote the script. He clearly knows his way around thrillers, having written the three Bourne Movies (though I've heard that Paul Greengrass pushed a lot of improvisation during The Bourne Ultimatum). What I found most compelling about this movie was its attention to detail. They put Clayton (Clooney) in a Mercedes, a very "old money" car, but he's only leasing it. It's as if he's trying to exude classy swank, but that's not actually who he is. Clayton is also always well-dressed, but during one scene, you can see the creases in his shirt created by packing it in his luggage. He tries to look well-pressed and perfect, but he's actually living his life from day to day, out of his suitcase. There were times while I was watching the movie that I felt bored, and I wasn't sure what the movie was trying to do. But as I neared the end of the film, I realized that this bored, unattached feeling was exactly what the movie wanted to create, because it lulls you into a place of security. Then with the conclusion, that security is ripped forcefully away.

Where did October go?!

Thank you for your kind words about my field exams. I'm sorry I've been rather silent lately, but I've been plunging into my dissertation research. I've gotten a bit sucked into my work. But I have managed to do some fun things:

Knitting:
I've been plugging away at Highland Triangle #3. I made it to the bind-off edging this morning, so hopefully I will finish soon. I cannot believe I've managed to knit this pattern three times in a year. My plan after I finish this shawl is to try the Shetland Triangle shawl from Wrap Style. I've got some lovely Knitpicks Alpaca Cloud set aside for this project.

Reading:
I've been reading the Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman series by Pamela Aidan. It's a somewhat cheesy "Pride and Prejudice from Darcy's POV" trilogy. I've tried a few of these P&P reworks before, and they usually disappoint. However, Aidan has managed to capture Austen's characters well, and she adds some interesting touches to the already well-known story. I have read the first two installments and have begun the third. Unfortunately, the second book, which details Darcy's actions during the "lost year" between his time in Hertfordshire and Kent is poorly plotted. For some reason Darcy gets drawn into some crazy revenge plot involving friends from his university days. I felt like I was reading a historical mystery/thriller instead of an Austen drama. But the first book was quite good, and the third is shaping up well also.

Movies:
Bourne Ultimatum
I saw this a couple months ago, but I haven't had the time to write about it until now. This movie was awesome! The acting, the direction, the plotting . . . everything was perfect. I saw an interview with Matt Damon, in which he said they didn't really have a script while they were filming the movie. That seems utterly unbelievable to me. Paul Greengrass (the director) must really know what he's doing. Of course, I do think he deserved an Oscar for directing (and writing, for that matter) United 93. The only "bad" thing about watching this movie was that there was a rather loud lady sitting in the same row as me at the theater. She kept saying things like "who's that?!" and "wait, is he dead?!" all the time. This was amusing and slightly annoying.

The Seeker: The Dark is Rising
I went to see this with Mike, because he really likes the books this movie is based on, The Dark is Rising series by Susan Cooper (who, btw, is visiting Boston for a couple speaking engagements in November). This movie was okay. It did a really good job of setting up a spooky atmosphere early on, but the climatic final battle was pretty lame. The effects got murky and muddy, and the kid they had playing the lead (an actor named Alexander Ludwig) couldn't quite carry the scene. Ludwig was pretty good throughout the rest of the movie, though.

Across the Universe
This is another uneven movie. Julie Taymor (of the Broadway version of The Lion King fame) has put together a visually stunning film, but the plot is quite cliched. In that respect, it's just another movie about kids trying to deal with the trauma of being sent to fight the Vietnam war. And it doesn't have anything new to say about that topic. However, the use of the Beatles' music (in several inventive arrangements) and the creative use of puppets, masks, and visual effects is very powerful. Plus, I did think the fellow who played Jude (Jim Sturgess) was impressive. However, there were several other characters I could have done without (such as Prudence) and some songs that were superfluous (they were cool to watch in and of themselves, but they didn't further the plot at all).

Gone Baby Gone
The acting and the direction in this film are both very impressive. Ben Affleck shows amazing talent behind the camera. However, the script was not as strong (this was co-written by Affleck and Aaron Stockard). It is reasonably well plotted, and it does a good job of planting the clues that solve the final mystery without being obvious. Nevertheless, there were several voice-overs and speeches that felt stilted, especially when the performances and visuals were otherwise so realistic. There were some bits of "The Departed" deja vu, but that was probably inevitable given that these are both movies about the Boston underworld.

Some Movie Reviews and Random Chit Chat

So I finished knitting Highland Triangle #2. I only need to block it and weave in two ends. Of course, I don't really have room to block it in my apartment, so it may be awhile before that gets done.

Also, I got my invite to Ravelry. My username is quincy134, so please friend me if you want to!

And now, onto the movie reviews. I rented a bunch of stuff last week, plus I caught a few things in the theater. Note that there are some spoilers

Spider-Man 3
This movie was pretty bad. It was too long, much of the dialogue was embarrassing, and I have no idea what they were trying to do with the Tobey Maguire dance sequence in the middle. Unlike the previous two installments, it went totally over the line from quirky to ridiculous. If I were them, I would have cut out the Sandman plot entirely.

Pirates of the Caribbean: At Worlds End
Also not a great movie. It's sad, because I actually kinda enjoyed Dead Man's Chest. But this installment was a bit more perfunctory, finishing up the threads thrown down in the last movie without offering much new. The action sequences were fine, but they didn't have the interesting sight gags that were in the second movie.

The Painted Veil
This movie is beautifully shot, well acted, and nicely designed. But the script leaves something to be desired. There is cliched dialogue ("Forgive me..." "There is nothing to forgive."), and you know the entire time that one of the main characters is going to die. This is a shame, because Edward Norton and Naomi Watts have good chemistry.

History Boys
Of these movies, this is probably the most inventive and the best written. However, I'm not sure what the point of the film was. It's adapted from a Tony Award winning play, and perhaps the stage version makes more sense. One of the main characters is basically a pedophile, but the movie seems to sympathize with him. I'm not sure if it is trying to be provocative or if the author actually believes that such behavior is excusable. If nothing else, the ensemble acting is excellent.

Miss Potter
Out of these five, I probably liked this movie the most. However, it too lacks something in the script and plotting. This may be because the creators were trying to follow the time line of Beatrix Potter's life, or it just may be because the script wasn't well constructed. It's unclear, mainly because I don't know much about Beatrix Potter. Nevertheless, the acting is nice (though at first you think that Renee Zellweger is being a bit over the top), Zellweger and McGregor have good chemistry, and the way they use Potter's drawings to move the story along is visually interesting.

AFI's Top 100 Movies

I Play with Pins and Needles mentioned that AFI had updated their Top 100 Movies list. This got me curious as to what I had seen on said list. Bold=Seen. *=I really like it.

1. "Citizen Kane," 1941.

2. "The Godfather," 1972.

* 3. "Casablanca," 1942.

4. "Raging Bull," 1980.

*5. "Singin' in the Rain," 1952.

6. "Gone With the Wind," 1939.

7. "Lawrence of Arabia," 1962.

8. "Schindler's List," 1993.

*9. "Vertigo," 1958.

10. "The Wizard of Oz," 1939.

11. "City Lights," 1931.

12. "The Searchers," 1956.

*13. "Star Wars," 1977.

14. "Psycho," 1960.

15. "2001: A Space Odyssey," 1968.

16. "Sunset Blvd.", 1950.

17. "The Graduate," 1967.

18. "The General," 1927.

19. "On the Waterfront," 1954.

20. "It's a Wonderful Life," 1946.

21. "Chinatown," 1974.

*22. "Some Like It Hot," 1959.

23. "The Grapes of Wrath," 1940.

24. "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," 1982.

25. "To Kill a Mockingbird," 1962.

26. "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," 1939.

27. "High Noon," 1952.

28. "All About Eve," 1950.

*29. "Double Indemnity," 1944.

30. "Apocalypse Now," 1979.

31. "The Maltese Falcon," 1941.

32. "The Godfather Part II," 1974.

33. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest," 1975.

34. "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," 1937.

35. "Annie Hall," 1977.

36. "The Bridge on the River Kwai," 1957.

37. "The Best Years of Our Lives," 1946.

38. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," 1948.

39. "Dr. Strangelove," 1964.

40. "The Sound of Music," 1965.

41. "King Kong," 1933.

42. "Bonnie and Clyde," 1967.

43. "Midnight Cowboy," 1969.

44. "The Philadelphia Story," 1940.

45. "Shane," 1953.

*46. "It Happened One Night," 1934.

47. "A Streetcar Named Desire," 1951.

48. "Rear Window," 1954.

49. "Intolerance," 1916.

*50. "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," 2001.

51. "West Side Story," 1961.

52. "Taxi Driver," 1976.

53. "The Deer Hunter," 1978.

54. "M-A-S-H," 1970.

55. "North by Northwest," 1959.

56. "Jaws," 1975.

57. "Rocky," 1976.

58. "The Gold Rush," 1925.

59. "Nashville," 1975.

60. "Duck Soup," 1933.

61. "Sullivan's Travels," 1941.

62. "American Graffiti," 1973.

63. "Cabaret," 1972.

64. "Network," 1976.

65. "The African Queen," 1951.

66. "Raiders of the Lost Ark," 1981.

67. "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?", 1966.

68. "Unforgiven," 1992.

69. "Tootsie," 1982.

70. "A Clockwork Orange," 1971.

71. "Saving Private Ryan," 1998.

72. "The Shawshank Redemption," 1994.

73. "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," 1969.

74. "The Silence of the Lambs," 1991.

75. "In the Heat of the Night," 1967.

76. "Forrest Gump," 1994.

77. "All the President's Men," 1976.

78. "Modern Times," 1936.

79. "The Wild Bunch," 1969.

*80. "The Apartment, 1960.

81. "Spartacus," 1960.

82. "Sunrise," 1927.

83. "Titanic," 1997.

84. "Easy Rider," 1969.

85. "A Night at the Opera," 1935.

86. "Platoon," 1986.

87. "12 Angry Men," 1957.

*88. "Bringing Up Baby," 1938.

89. "The Sixth Sense," 1999.

90. "Swing Time," 1936.

91. "Sophie's Choice," 1982.

92. "Goodfellas," 1990.

93. "The French Connection," 1971.

94. "Pulp Fiction," 1994.

95. "The Last Picture Show," 1971.

96. "Do the Right Thing," 1989.

97. "Blade Runner," 1982.

98. "Yankee Doodle Dandy," 1942.

*99. "Toy Story," 1995.

100. "Ben-Hur," 1959.

That's 30 I've seen. I'm happy that Vertigo and Casablanca are so high up there, but I was a little puzzled by The Sixth Sense being on there at all.