Rabbit Hole

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A couple (Nicole Kidman & Aaron Eckhart) grieves the loss of their 4-year-old son.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart, Dianne Wiest, Miles Teller, Tammy Blanchard, Sandra Oh, Giancarlo Esposito, Jon Tenney

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! It will put you in their place, and fill you with compassion. It's like my mother always says, "There's nothing worse than the loss of a child." I know, that's not the kind of thing most mothers always say, but that was just her way of trying to convince me not to take drugs.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: If you read the movie's description and thought to yourself, "That sounds like a film I'd like to see to get a good laugh," then-- it might just take all of my inner strength not to insult your sanity.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: For me the tears weren't inspired by the main characters so much as the people around them. There are so many more parts to this problem than I would have imagined.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Nicole Kidman: believe the hype.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: In other Nicole Kidman news, she has finally got her forehead moving again, so that's a relief. Unfortunately, she's now shooting her lips up with so much collagen, that in some scenes, she almost sounds like she has a speech impediment. This has everything to do with the acting because it took me about half the movie to stop staring at her strange pout, before I was finally able to lose myself in the extraordinary performance she'd been giving all along. I really hate collagen lips. And hers are even making me start to miss the Botox a little bit.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: John Cameron Mitchell has made three films, and I have loved them all. The other two are filled with titillatingly disturbing sex scenes, while this one doesn't include so much as a kiss. It seems like a departure for him, but in fact, it's just more proof that he can tackle any difficult subject matter in a way that makes you want to accept and understand it.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Despite the fact that it's based on a play, and despite the fact that its locations and characters are extremely contained, as a play would be, it somehow doesn't feel like it's just a play on film.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: Rabbit Hole Trailer

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Charlie St. Cloud

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: All the different ways you can light Zac Efron to showcase his extreme levels of beauty... Other than that, I'm not really sure. I think there was the death of a brother. Some ghosts. A girl. And a whole bunch of melodrama.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: When you have Zac Efron, does anyone else really matter?

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Stop! I liked him by candlelight. Daylight was nice. The sunset wasn't bad either. Moonlight wasn't so great though, because you could only see him in silhouette, and when he took off his shirt, you could hardly see his dewy muscles glistening.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Funny, but in an extremely pleasant way, were the skin tight shirts Zac Efron wore in every scene. My favorite was the maroon one, because you could really see his nipples protruding. Of course that's not counting the white one, which became transparent when wet, as he slowly rises out of the lake, like a merman.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Zac's eyes are such a deep, rich shade of blue as they well up with tears in scene upon scene. It was just my luck that his brother died early in the film, so he could be sad and weepy throughout.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Cutest Smile.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Did you know that Kim Bassinger and Ray Liotta were in this film? Yeah, neither did any of the women in the audience. How could they think about such things when Zac Efron was steaming up the screen.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Somehow the man knew that if he put Zac Efron's face, smile, eyes, arms, and pecs in every shot, nobody would notice how bad the directing and the story were. He was right.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: When the opening title of the film came up on the screen, I thought to myself, "What a dumb name for a movie." But, as the anonymous heterosexual male friend who saw it with me (and shall remain nameless to protect the innocent) said, "They had to name it Charlie St. Cloud, because it was the only thing they could do to stop you from thinking you're watching a story about Zac Efron."

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: I heard on the radio today that Zac Efron would be interested in hooking up with either Eva Mendez or Penelope Cruz-- which is great news, because I'm an older woman, too, and on a good day, I can pass for Latina-- which makes me his type!

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/charlie-st-cloud/1430516/trailers

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The Messenger

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A wounded war hero (Ben Foster) comes back from Iraq with 3 months left to serve and is assigned to join the team of soldiers who inform the next of kin when their loved ones have died in battle.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson, Samantha Morton, Jena Malone, Steve Buscemi, Jahmir Duran-Abreau, Yaya DaCosta, Eamonn Walker, Lisa Joyce

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! This film manages to gut-wrenchingly portray the atrocities of war, without ever showing a single frame of the atrocities of war.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: What is it about Woody Harrelson that makes his most disturbed characters come off so funny? I guess there's a fine line between hilarious and clinically insane.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you don't cry, you might just be hilarious (as defined above).

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Woody is up for Best Supporting actor at the Oscars, as are the screenwriters, Oren Moverman and Alessandro Camon. They're all also nominated for Spirit Awards, along with Samantha Morton. Meanwhile, Ben Foster comes off like one of the most overlooked performances of the Awards season. And I'll tell you why I think he was overlooked... Because (at least in this movie) he looks like Owen Wilson.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: All the actors have so much going on underneath the surface that you empathize with them, without ever imagining that you might be able to relate to the inner torture of what they're going through.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: The directing is not particularly noticeable, except when the camera holds a little too long on several shots of Ben Foster staring off at someone he feels compassion for.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: The dialogue is understated in exactly the right way. It doesn't give you everything, but it never leaves you hanging. At some point in the second half, the story meanders onto a different course than it originally set off on, and the movie starts to feel about 10 minutes too long, but in the end you forgive it, because it still feels important and new. How is it that this is the first time that anyone has ever thought to tell the sad story of the poor soldiers who are tasked with reporting the worst possible news to loving families, day in and day out?

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/the-messenger/36286/trailers

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Brothers

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: When a Marine (Tobey Maguire) goes to war and dies, his brother (Jake Gyllenhaal) takes over his role as husband to his wife (Natalie Portman). There's only one problem with their new arrangement: the Marine is still alive.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Tobey Maguire, Jake Gyllenhaal, Natalie Portman, Bailee Madison, Taylor Geare, Sam Shepard, Mare Winningham, Patrick Flueger, Clifton Collins Jr., Carey Mulligan, Omid Abtahi, Ethan Suplee, Jenny Wade

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. This is a really poignant and empathetic concept, as well as a visceral depiction of post-war trauma, but it could have been doubly hard hitting if the relationship between the wife and the brother had gone further, and they didn't show us that the Marine wasn't really dead.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Jake Gyllenhaal's character is pretty witty, even in the most absurd of circumstances, and an elephant has big ears.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you do, it will also be because an elephant has big ears, which is really obvious to a person who is in any way mentally stable.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Tobey Maguire obviously took this role with awards consideration in mind, and while his "work" is visible (maybe even a little too visible), he gets acted out of the water by 10-year-old, Bailee Madison. That's who I would love to see get an acting nomination.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Jake Gyllenhaal was more interesting than I remembered him being as an actor. But the parts that really make you think, in this one, are the supporting roles. Bailee Madison, as mentioned above, cries repeatedly and believably on cue. Taylor Geare, who's young enough to still have most of her baby teeth, looks and acts like a leading lady in the making. Jenny Wade, with only one small scene, makes a valuable impression on the family and on the film. And Patrick Flueger, whom I know but have never seen act before, does such believable work as a prisoner of war, that I was sucked into his performance to the point of actually forgetting that I knew him. And if you've ever watched anyone you know do any acting, you know that's really saying something.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Jim Sheridan is an old pro, but if I hadn't known it was his work, I wouldn't have had any way of knowing that this director had more than a couple of films under his belt. Nothing in the directing stands out as being particularly outstanding. Although I was impressed with the entire cast and crew for braving so many freezing cold looking scenes outdoors in the snow... unless those scenes were shot on a sound-stage, in which case Sheridan did a very convincing job of selling the desolate winter.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: I wish they had gone the distance with the power of the premise, and led us to believe that the Marine was dead, so that when he returned, it would have been a surprised twist that we, the audience, could have been as confused and confounded by as the characters were supposed to be. We would have been emotionally involved in the characters' inner conflict on a much more profound level if they had. And I know we need to see what happened to the Marine in Afghanistan, but they could have found other ways to do it later in the film, after the reveal-- like in a flashback. Admittedly, I'm not a huge fan of flashbacks, and they're hard to get past studio executives, but if ever there was an appropriate time for one, this was it.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.moviefone.com/movie/brothers/31198/trailers

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A Single Man

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: A man (Colin Firth) tries to cope with the sudden death of his lover, who-- it might interest some people to know-- was also a man (Matthew Goode).

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Colin Firth, Matthew Goode, Julianne Moore, Nicholas Hoult, Ginnifer Goodwin, Ryan Simpkins, Paulette Lamori, Lee Pace

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. This is what people call a "beautiful film", meaning that it has a dramatic score and meditatively seems to be addressing something grand and important. You know in your heart, simply from reading that last sentence, if that's the type of thing you respond to.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Apparently, some people in my theater think suicide is funny.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: If you have recently experienced a loss, you will find the emotions here unbearable, and shouldn't go. If you haven't recently experienced a loss, you probably won't cry. So, either way, it's a no.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: It's got buzz. Having seen it, I'm not exactly sure around what...

Q: How is the Acting?

A: What I love about gay films by fashion designers is that the men are hot, tan, and dressed impeccably (when they're dressed). Over all, there's more eye candy than acting. And speaking of eyes, what exactly is the symbolism behind all those eye close-ups supposed to be?

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Tom Ford, Gucci's savior, debuts his visual style on the big screen, and while the lighting choices seemed a thoughtful way to differentiate the cold dead present from the warm lively past, I later read that this was supposed to all take place on the first day after Colin Firth finds out about the death of his lover (not counting the flashbacks to when his lover was alive). Well, it was specifically those lighting choices that confused me as to the time line, because they were not consistent, and sometimes the present shifted from a cold and grey, sepia color scheme to a happier looking warm yellow. Also, there are some scenes that drag on, while not advancing anything.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: To me this is one of those scripts that tries so hard to be subtle and meaningful without spoon feeding anything, that it ends up feeling self important. And in its efforts not to talk down to the audience, it ends up slapping them in the face with an uppity pretension.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eafJ4jvf-sY

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The Road

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: After an unexplained apocalypse, a man and his son (Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee) go on the road looking for food, and trying to avoid being killed and eaten by other humans.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: Viggo Mortensen, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Charlize Theron, Robert Duvall, Guy Pearce, Garret Dillahunt, Michael K. Williams

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Proceed with Caution. If I were a producer in the movie The Player, this would be my sales pitch, "Okay, here's the deal. Picture Zombieland-- number one at the box office last weekend. Got it? So our movie is just like that, but without any of the humor or the zombies." And that would actually be a pretty accurate description of this grim and hopeless depiction of a world with about as much hope as a gas shower.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: Once. And it's so out of place in this dark, quiet piece, that it actually makes you feel like you just farted really loudly, and everyone knows you dealt it.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: It is tense, but it's much too alienating to elicit tears.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: Clearly that's the only possible goal the Weinstein Company could've had in releasing this film, cuz it's certainly not trying to entertain anyone.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Viggo Mortensen finds his on-screen equal in an 11-year-old boy named Kodi Smit-McPhee. Not only does the boy look like a perfect combination of the genes of Viggo Mortensen and Charlize Theron, but he acts like this isn't his first apocalypse.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: John Hillcoat's images are probably the main reason that lovers of cinema will appreciate this art film. It is truly gorgeous... I mean, if you can find beauty in a gray world covered in trash and scattered with people who are covered in grime.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Cormac McCarthy's book makes for a script of few words. It's slow, meditative, and doesn't lead toward much more than the characters' impending death. I imagine those who've read the book will find greater depth than I did in this examination of a father and son relationship at the end of a life worth living.

Q: Is there anything else worth mentioning about the movie?

A: This is not an action-adventure "event" movie, so the following trailer is completely misleading:

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbLgszfXTAY

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The Boys Are Back

(Guest Review by Tempany)

Q: What’s the movie about?

A: When a globe trotting sports reporter (Clive Owen) loses his wife to cancer he is forced to finally become accountable as a father.

Q: Who’s in the movie?

A: The very handsome and talented Clive Owen, an astoundingly brilliant child actor called Nicholas McAnulty, George MacKay, Laura Fraser and Emma Booth.

Q: Is this movie worth the price of admission?

A: Go! If you need a good cry and a chance to relive any abandonment issues as a child, this is the flick for you! Much cheaper than therapy and unlike the couch, The Boys Are Back actually leaves you with hope that the world isn’t such a horrible place after all.

Q: Will this movie make me laugh?

A: The kid has some excellent one-liners that will most definitely make you grin through your tears. Out of the mouths of babes and all that jazz.

Q: Will this movie make me cry?

A: Yes, yes and more yes. If you don’t cry you may just be a sociopath. (BTW, Monique didn't cry.) But the crying is a satisfying weep filled with hope and the promise of a happy ending.

Q: Will this movie be up for any awards?

A: The Australian Film Industry will no doubt give this a big nod for independent awards and hopefully the rest of the Indie Prizes around the world will follow suit.

Q: How is the Acting?

A: Fantastic. The two boys in the film are so utterly convincing as lost and confused kids that you may just forget you’re watching a film. Clive Owen does a great job at keeping things understated and believable and we soon grow to love the whole family.

Q: How is the Directing?

A: Scott Hicks, who directed the wonderful Shine, does not disappoint. His picturesque sun drenched Australian landscapes do not distract from the families’ cloudy journey through the grieving process. In a perfect world we could have done without the ghostly visits from the deceased wife but luckily they don’t bug you too much.

Q: How is the story/script?

A: Pretty damn incredible. Based on Simon Carr’s memoir, screenwriter Allan Cubitt creates some of the freshest and funniest dialogue in years. Fatherhood gets a thorough examination, warts and all. Although the subject matter of the film is tragic, the story moves along with inspirational jolts the whole way.

Q: Where can I see the trailer?

A: http://www.traileraddict.com/trailer/the-boys-are-back/trailer

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