Archive for the ‘Movies’ Category

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Gushing Over Victor Garber

Monday, December 3rd, 2012

At our Cinema Society screening of “Argo” a while back, I couldn’t help but let out a little cheer when I saw the award-winning actor show up in the movie playing the good guy. I hadn’t realized that he was in it, and then there he was coming to the aid of the American hostages. Perfect casting, since Victor is one of the nicest men on the planet.

Having had two parents with Alzheimer’s disease, Victor was the primary caregiver for his mother when he was in L.A. shooting the TV show “Alias.” When I was putting together candidates to be interviewed for YOU’D BETTER NOT DIE OR I’LL KILL YOU, I had asked my friend, Laurie Burrows Grad, to make the connection with Victor, whom she knows from both their work with the Alzheimer’s Association. She emailed him about me and the book, and he didn’t hesitate to agree to participate.

As soon as the book was published, I sent him a copy so he could see how his contributions turned out and to thank him for taking time in his busy schedule to answer my questions.

Today, he wrote me a thank you note. How nice is that? This is a man who juggles movie and television projects with theater roles and nonprofit work and is beloved by everyone he meets – and he liked my book. With his permission, I’m sharing his words, which touched me a lot.

Jane, your book is so moving, funny, insightful, and helpful in so many ways.
I am honored to be a part of it . Thank you for including me, and thank you for writing it.
I know that care giving is an ongoing activity for all of us, sometimes in small ways,
and at other times, much more demanding. This book is a helpful reminder, and practical guide,
for all situations requiring our help. I know it will be deeply appreciated.
I hope your holiday season is peaceful, and filled with joy.
All the best,
Victor

I really, really appreciated his kindness.

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Posted in Books, Movies, Television, Wellness | 10 Comments »

Movie Day: “Hitchcock”

Sunday, December 2nd, 2012

Today’s screening was an another example of low expectations/high reward. I went into “Hitchcock” having read some not-so-hot reviews and figured the movie would be worth seeing just for the performances of Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren, who never disappoint.

It turns out the film itself was the ideal entertainment for a rainy Sunday in Santa Barbara. It doesn’t put the great director on a pedestal, nor does it focus on Hitchcock as the perv director who only lusts after blondes, as the HBO movie did. Instead, it depicts a period in Hitchcock’s life – at age 60 – when he was looking for another project to direct, to prove to Hollywood he wasn’t “over,” and decided on “Psycho,” a horror movie no one wanted him to make.

We go behind the scenes of the shooting of “Psycho,” the marketing of it, and the demons it brought out in Hitchcock. We also get an up-close story of his long marriage to and partnership with his wife, Alma. As brilliantly played by Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren, these two are people you come to care about. And watching two Oscar winners go at it is always fun. Scarlett Johansson is a pitch-perfect Janet Leigh (even daughter Jamie Lee thought so, according to the movie’s director, who was full of interesting stories during the Q&A and reception) and the actor who plays Tony Perkins is a dead ringer for the real thing.

I really did have a good time at this one.

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Movie Night: “Amour”

Saturday, November 24th, 2012

Talk about a caregiver movie. This French film that opens in the U.S. next month is not an easy one to sit through, as beautifully told and brilliantly acted as it is. Starring Jean-Louis Trintignant, who was so memorable years ago in the romantic “A Man and a Woman,” and the gifted Emmanuelle Riva, it’s essentially a two-character story about a couple in their 80s who’ve suddenly been forced to face a medical crisis and test their love in ways they never imagined.

Music teachers who seem to have had a comfortable, cultured, happily married life together, she suffers a debilitating stroke that leaves her dependent on him. He has promised he will take care of her in their apartment, as opposed to hospitalizing her, and he does everything – I mean everything – he can to fulfill that promise.

The movie is heartbreaking and inspiring simultaneously. And it provokes debate. We saw it with friends, and immediately after the credits rolled the four of us launched into a discussion of living wills and pulling the plug and all sorts of ghoulish-but-necessary subjects people have to grapple with. One thing we all agreed on though: after sitting through two hours of “Amour,” we were so ready for a comedy.

 

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Posted in Movies, Wellness | 2 Comments »

Movie Day: “Silver Linings Playbook”

Sunday, November 18th, 2012

 

Today’s Cinema Society screening blew me away. I’d read all the rave reviews for “Silver Linings Playbook,” so I went into the theater trying to tamp down my expectations. Good news: the movie didn’t disappoint. At all.

Here’s the movie company’s synopsis…

Life doesn’t always go according to plan. Pat Solatano (Bradley Cooper) has lost everything — his house, his job, and his wife. He now finds himself living back with his mother (Jacki Weaver) and father (Robert DeNiro) after spending eight months is a state institution on a plea bargain. Pat is determined to rebuild his life, remain positive and reunite with his wife, despite the challenging circumstances of their separation. All Pat’s parents want is for him to get back on his feet-and to share their family’s obsession with the Philadelphia Eagles football team. When Pat meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a mysterious girl with problems of her own, things get complicated. Tiffany offers to help Pat reconnect with his wife, but only if he’ll do something very important for her in return. As their deal plays out, an unexpected bond begins to form between them, and silver linings appear in both of their lives.

Here’s the trailer….

Here’s my take…

This comedy/drama about a guy who’s bipolar (Bradley Cooper) and a girl (Jennifer Lawrence) who’s trying to bounce back from the death of her husband is everything you’d want in a grownup movie: great acting, snappy script, brisk pacing, complicated subject. It’s probably my favorite movie of the year so far, although I did love “The Impossible” too.

David O. Russell, who came for the Q&A following the screening, has directed some terrific films, most recently “The Fighter.” He was drawn to the story in part because his son is bipolar (the son even appears in the movie as the kid who knocks on the Solatanos’ door with a video camera). DiNiro’s son is similarly afflicted, so he and Russell both wanted to tackle the material. When Russell was asked why he cast the star of the “Hangover” comedies in such a complex leading role, he explained that he’d seen Cooper in “Wedding Crashers” in which he demonstrated that he could play an angry guy. Jennifer Lawrence, on the other hand, was a last-minute casting choice. The part of Tiffany was a plum role and every actress in Hollywood auditioned. Russell was trying to settle on the right one when Lawrence sent in an audition via Skype – and nailed the part. As a result, the Best Actress Oscar category just got more competitive.

 

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Movie Day: “Life of Pi”

Saturday, November 17th, 2012

 

What a visual experience today’s Cinema Society screening was! I don’t even know where to begin except to say that Ang Lee, who somehow manages to direct memorable movies portraying every culture (“Sense and Sensibility,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” “Brokeback Mountain,” among others), must be a genius.

He’s taken a novel that was both beloved and critically acclaimed – a novel with a very internal, un-cinematic story – and turned it into a movie experience like no other. Much of what makes “Life of Pi” so compelling on screen is the creative use of CGI technology and 3D. Don’t even think of seeing it on a TV or computer. It’s 3D all the way, funny glasses and all. Having exotic animals jump out at you is a big part of the fun. It opens in theaters next week.

You know the story….A young Indian boy is bound for Canada with his family and their menagerie of zoo animals when their cargo ship goes down in a storm in the Pacific Ocean. Our hero ends up on a lifeboat with a ferocious Bengal tiger – and survives.

Lee decided to have the adult Pi tell us the story by having him tell it to the writer who’s come to visit him, so we’re watching a story within a story. But the movie is all about the younger Pi, miraculously played by an actor who’d never acted before.

I found the first half-hour or so a bit clunky, with too much voice-over and back-and-forths in time, but it gets going with a vengeance when we hit the high seas. We’re talking about “Castaways” without Tom Hanks but with a boy and a tiger instead, wrapped in a message that’s spiritual without being the least bit preachy. Could it have been shorter and tighter? Yes. But that’s my chief complaint with movies these days.

Ang Lee came for the Q&A following the screening and talked about how the project had taken so many twists and turns during its 10 years in development at Fox. At first he didn’t know how he would translate the novel to the screen, but decided that 3D was the way to “open it up.” He also commented on his young star, saying that he looked at 3,000 actors before choosing one with no experience. He chose wisely; the kid’s great.

 

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Movie Afternoon: “Flight”

Thursday, November 15th, 2012

 

I played hookey this afternoon and went to see Denzel Washington – knowing there would be scary scenes on an airplane and aware that my fear-of-flying self would go nuts. That’s how much I love Denzel as an actor (he’s not bad looking either).

He was as brilliant as always, only even more vulnerable than usual. As an alcoholic pilot wrestling with conscience and guilt, he showed a side I hadn’t seen before.

That said, I was less enthusiastic about the movie itself.

I found the love story a distraction rather than an interesting plot point or character reveal. I didn’t buy the ending at the NTSB hearing (I won’t spoil it). And there were at least two “Hey look – he’s drunk again” scenes that could have been cut. But the acting all around was first rate; Melissa Leo, John Goodman, Bruce Greenwood and Don Cheadle were all great.

Will Denzel get another Oscar nom? It’s a very tough field, but I hope so.

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Movie Day: “Quartet”

Sunday, November 11th, 2012

 

Today’s Cinema Society screening was a charming indie film featuring a stellar British cast including Maggie Smith and Tom Courtenay. It’s set at the veddy veddy English Beecham House, a home for retired opera singers and musicians that needs a splashy gala performance by its aging stars in order to raise money and allow its residents to stay on. One of those residents is Maggie Smith’s character, Jean Horton, a diva with an ego the size of Great Britain. She and Tom Courtenay’s Reggie were once part of a famous quartet. The two were also married until she had an affair and broke his heart. When she arrives at Beecham House, he hasn’t seen her in years and is clearly still wounded. Will the members of the quartet be able to patch up their differences in time for the gala concert?

The ending is never in doubt, but it’s the getting there that’s fun….

And the fact that the movie was directed by Dustin Hoffman in his first directing gig for the screen. I was so excited that we had him for the Q&A after the screening unlike Ben Affleck yesterday who was sick and couldn’t come. (Affleck did send us a note of apology today that was read on stage; sounds like he really wanted to be there and will make every effort to reschedule.)

As Dustin spoke to us, I kept pinching myself. I mean how often do you get to be in the presence of one of your movie icons? “The Graduate?” “Kramer vs. Kramer?” “Midnight Cowboy?” “Tootsie?” Hello? I was in heaven listening to him.

And did he ever talk. The Q&A ran way over the usual time, but I didn’t care. His stories were so entertaining – from why it took him so long to direct a movie to how important it is for us to maintain our passion for life even as we age. He recounted a hilarious anecdote about trying to take a photo with his iPhone and mistakenly turning the camera on himself. “That’s what I look like now?” he said with a big smile. He also said it was a jolt when he was at an airport recently and was starting to take off his shoes in the security line when a TSA guy said, “You don’t have to take off your shoes.” Hoffman asked why and the guy pointed to a sign saying that people 75 and older didn’t have to take off their shoes. “I guess that goes for terrorists too,” he joked.

He was funny. He was interesting. And he was humble, thanking our audience over and over for liking his movie. It was sweet.

 

 

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Movie Day: “Argo”

Saturday, November 10th, 2012

There was good news and bad news about today’s special Cinema Society screening of “Argo.” The good news was that I really liked the movie. The bad news was that the reason we didn’t screen it earlier, before it was released, was because we were getting Ben Affleck for a Q&A and reception – and Ben had the flu and couldn’t be there. Everybody was disappointed, but apparently he’s planning to come up from LA as soon as he’s better and try again.

So. The movie.

What a riveting thriller. Even though it’s based on a true story and I knew how the events would turn out, it was so suspenseful that I had a knot in my stomach and got teary when it was over.

It’s the story of the covert and seemingly hair-brained operation to rescue six Americans during the Iran hostage crisis. A CIA “exfiltration” specialist named Tony Mendez (Affleck) comes up with a plan to convince the Iranians that he and the six Americans are merely scouting locations for a science fiction epic – all in order to get them out of the country safely.

Alan Arkin is hilarious as the Hollywood producer who goes along with the project. So is John Goodman, the makeup man and part-time operative pal of Mendez’s. Bryan Cranston plays Mendez’s boss at the CIA and delivers as always. Affleck somehow manages to star in the movie as well as direct and produce it, and he’s developed into a fine actor, if a little one-note.

Will “Argo” be nominated for Best Picture? Without a doubt. Is it more entertaining than, say, “Lincoln?” Absolutely. “Lincoln” has the prestige and Daniel Day-Lewis, but “Argo” is a whole lot more fun while it, too, teaches us about history.

 

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Movie Night: “Lincoln”

Tuesday, November 6th, 2012

Let me start off by saying Michael is a history buff. I mean a serious student of history and someone who was really looking forward to this movie. I was looking forward to it too, because who wouldn’t want to see the gifted Daniel Day-Lewis take on one of our greatest presidents, with Steven Spielberg directing and Tony Kushner writing. So we went to last night’s screening with high hopes, despite being told there would be security present and we’d have to get TSA’ed and leave our cellphones in the car (none of that happened) and despite the early word that the film was “talky.”

But, oh my. What a ponderous experience. Day-Lewis is a marvel – the voice, the stooped posture, the weariness, the occasional joke teller, the long-suffering husband – but the movie is much too long and much too static, like a stage play. In fact, after the opening scene, I whispered to Michael, “I feel trapped in a high school production. Are they all going to speak in speeches?”

The answer was yes. The characters, with a few exceptions (a much-needed dose of levity from James Spader), spoke in speeches instead of dialogue that real people would speak, even politicians. Movies should be about storytelling, and Spielberg seemed more concerned with presenting Lincoln, the mythological figure. Sally Field as Mary Todd Lincoln was straight out of a Tennessee Williams play.

I came home last night tired and cranky and wishing I had better news about this one.

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Posted in Movies, Politics | 4 Comments »

Movie Day: “Ginger & Rosa”

Sunday, November 4th, 2012

Today’s screening was the latest directorial feature from Sally Potter (“Orlando”), and it was a beautiful film that cried out for editing. So artistic and true to its 60s-in-London setting but soooo slow. It’s the coming-of-age story of two teenage girls, best friends as a result of their mothers giving birth on the same day, who are driven apart by a scandalous betrayal – all set against the threat of nuclear destruction.

The reason to see the film is Elle Fanning, the younger sister of actress Dakota Fanning. She is, quite simply, a revelation. Ginger, her character, experiences such an enormous range of emotions, and Elle plays every scene brilliantly. I’ve seen a lot of good performances so far this Oscar season, including Helen Hunt’s yesterday in “The Sessions,” but Elle is right there with the best of them.

She came for a Q&A after the screening and was so giggly and adorable – like the teenager she is but with such poise and command of her craft. She had everybody charmed, including Jeff Bridges, who was sitting a couple of rows in front of me and went to talk to her at the end of the Q&A. Maybe they’re making a movie together, who knows, but I can’t wait to see what this talented young woman does next.

Tomorrow night: “Lincoln.”

 

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