Her

Wow. I don't even know where to begin with this. First off, I'd recommend NOT seeing this with a significant other or a parent... maybe not even a friend. It was just awkward upon awkward upon awkward. Phone sex was involved. I was not expecting that. So awkward.

Joaquin Phoenix was phenomenal. This was a very emotional film, and the way he played that emotion; Theodore's sadness, his joy, etc were all very believable. I loved his, and Amy Adams' performances in this. Speaking of Adams, seeing her in this shortly after seeing American Hustle (I still can't get over how great that movie was), I was able to compare the two roles, which I liked. She was a completely different person, and you could see it in her movement. At times, I even forgot that Sydney (American Hustle) and Amy (Her)were played by the same actress. I don't think I've ever seen someone this good since Sandra Bullock. She may even be better than Bullock.

From what I saw, I believe Her was filmed almost 100% hand-held. I could look it up to be sure, but that's too much work and I'm lazy. If I'm correct, however, I think that is a very interesting way to have done this movie, and it worked very well for it.

There's not much more I can say about this movie without giving something away. If you do choose to see it, I'd suggest seeing it alone. There are some parts that are just too uncomfortable to view even with the closest of friends.

I give Her 5.5 out of 10.

Anchorman: The Legend Continues

Ron Burgundy; with a mustache made of golden straw akin to that of which Rumpelstiltskin weaved.

How can you not enjoy a movie with a character such as Ron Burgundy? I went in this knowing nothing, except that it was a sequel to Anchorman.
Ron has a kid, and that kid was a fantastic actor! He was basically a mini Ron Burgundy! His wardrobe, how he spoke, it was all Mini-Ron! At first, I thought he was intentionally acting out the role in a cheesy, unprofessional way, for humour's sake, but, no! He was being his dad!

I can't say much about this film without giving away something, and it's best to see this knowing as little as possible. I will say one thing; If you don't see the humour in this movie, YOU MUST BE BLIND.

Just for the record, tonight was the best theatre experience of my life. The audience was so into the movie that people barely whispered when making comments on it, and no one minded! It felt like I was sitting in a giant living-room. THAT Is what going to the movies should be like!

I give Anchorman 2 7.5 out of 10. 

American Hustle

Tonight was an adventure, to say the least. Once the movie was out, I went to my van only to discover that it would not start. I asked for assistance from multiple people, but no one could give me a boost - not even the maintenance staff or a taxi driver. Finally, after almost an hour of running around, looking for help, a very kind man had jumper-cables and helped me start my car! Yay for nice middle-aged men! Here's some advice; if you live in a cold area, keep a pair of jumper-cables in your vehicle at all times. Even if you won't need them, you never know when someone might ask for a boost.

Anyway, on to discuss American Hustle. I have so much to say about this film. I went into the theatre not really knowing what to expect. I had heard great reviews of it from everyone, except from one person; that one person was probably the most excited to see this movie, so to hear she didn't like it surprised me and caused me to doubt the opinion I had develop based on the previews I had seen. I also am NOT a fan of Bradley Cooper, so I wasn't too excited to see him in this. However, I now see why they chose him for that role. He suited that character very well (although, with that being said, it makes me dislike him as an actor even more than before) and he did a great job playing it out.
The Movie starts out with a middle-aged man putting on his toupee. As I watched him doing so, I couldn't help but wonder, "is that Christian Bale??" and, sure enough, it was! I had forgotten he was in this, so I was pleasantly surprised!! He is almost unrecognizable! The only reason I was able to tell it was him is because he has a very distinctive mouth; his teeth rest against his upper lip in a unique way. Yes, I notice things about a person's face. Anyway, his voice, body shape, everything was completely different! But, man, did he do a fantastic job in this film! He made up for having to see so much of Bradley Cooper,to be honest. I had to keep telling myself that the over-weight older man was Christian Bale! I still have trouble believing it. 
Amy Adams, the leading lady of the film, is Bale's love interest and oh my goodness gracious, do they make a cute couple!! I don't normally make such girly remarks, but seriously, they are just adorable on screen!! I have never seen such chemistry between two people in a movie before! Also, as a side-note, American Hustle did the one sex-scene in the most tasteful way possible. They never showed any nudity, but it was definitely heavily implied, and you for sure knew what was happening. However, it was very brief, and very modest (as modest as a modern-day sex-scene can be, that is). I was thoroughly impressed with that. But, anyway, most adorable on-screen couple award, hands-down!
Another thing I would like to mention is Adams' performance. I recently took a theatre course and was taught that you need to change your whole body (how you walk, move, carry yourself, etc) to properly play a different character. Although this is what is taught to a theatre student, and I would assume actors/actresses would know this as well, I hardly ever see anyone actually change their natural movements. Adams, however, is different. I've seen her in plenty of films, as well as interviews and other such things, so I know fairly well how she moves and carries herself. She had a completely different way of walking in American Hustle than I had ever seen her do before. She moved the way Sydney Prosser move. Not only that, but Sydney Prosser moved the way Lady Edith would move. That's another thing I wanted to point out; Adams wasn't just doing the role of Sydney, but she was also doing the role of Sydney, who was doing the role of Lady Edith. She had to do two characters at one time! Of course, similar characters have been done that way before, but Adams did such a phenomenal job at it that I often forgot that, when she was being Sydney, she was being the real character. Lady Edith was so believable, so convincing, that she fooled even myself.

Now to discuss the more indepth parts of the film. The soundtrack is, if I may quote my friend, Joel, "...phenomenal. Never has a soundtrack added more to a film...First-time rating: 8/10." Whoever scored this movie is a genius and I hope he scores more movies I plan to see in the future. Everything was beautifully picked and placed, smoothly edited and worked wonderfully with what was happening while it played. It was perfect.
I was quite intrigued with how the narration/backstory of the characters was displayed. All three main characters where the narrators and, even though the story jumped around between the three of them for the first little bit of the film, it was very easy to follow, and very entertaining. I have never seen a narration like that before. Most films I've seen with similar methods usually have a scene and then go into a flash-back or something, but this one, instead, took a scene and broke it in two. In the middle of the scene, a voice-over narration began before the camera shoots to before Irving (Bale) and Sydney (Adams) met. It later goes back to the split scene (once the audience is all caught-up with the characters and their back-stories) and the story goes on from there. I have NEVER seen that done before, and it was done wonderfully!
I want to say they used a filter over the camera lens to make the film look more of a genuine movie of the 70's (which is the decade it's based in), but I can't be sure. The screen just seemed to have a filmy kind of look to it. If that was intentional, I think that's a great way to further display the story's date. Although, it could have just been the projector.

This was a very good movie, in my opinion. I was so engulfed in it that I verbally, and sometimes even physically, reacted to anything and everything that happened - that's how you know I'm really into what I'm watching. It was quite funny, actually. There were these two guys sitting behind me and every time I saw Cooper and Adams characters being too friendly with one another, I made an involuntary disgusted noise. They laughed at me for that. They also seemed to find my body-movements amusing as well; like, when something intense was about to happen, I would cover my face and whisper something to myself, and I would hear them snickering immediately after. Not that I minded, of course. I'm sure I'm very entertaining to watch during a movie, sometimes. I'm glad I could provide them with some amusement.

Joel tweeted after seeing this, "Whilst it's intelligent, it isn't too confusing. Very well written, exciting idea. Times of poignancy and genuine tension," and he couldn't be more right. 
I give American Hustle 9.5 out of 10 (it would have been 10 out of 10 if it weren't for Bradley Cooper).

p.s. follow Joel on Twitter @JDunnWilson and on YouTube.

August: Osage County

What can I say about this movie? To start, the all-star cast was just wonderful! Meryl Streep and Julia Roberts' roles were very different than anything I've seen either of them do before, and they were both very convincing and committed. Also, did not expect this, but Benedict Cumberbatch was in this! So, if there are any of you Sherlock fans out there (and I know there are), you should probably check out August: Osage County for him, if nothing else. His role wasn't huge, but it was definitely done very well.
The actual storyline was a bit mediocre. It would rise at times, causing one to anticipate what would happen next, only for it to fall shortly afterwards and drag on for what felt like eternity. At one point, there was a scene where Streep's character told her daughters about a crush she had had on a boy in high school and her mother's influence with it. The story showed her relationship with her mother, which, to me, seemed very similar to her own daughters relationship with her. At first, I thought, "This is good. Perhaps they'll change their perspective on their mother now." But, then nothing happened. That information didn't seem to be used once that scene had ended. At least, I didn't notice it being used. There were multiple incidents like that throughout the film, and the end itself was left very open. I left the theatre confused and a bit frustrated that I spent $10.00 on such a dumb movie. The actors/actresses were wonderful, and the way everything panned out was of no fault of theirs. I'm sure the writer(s) could have (and maybe should have) done a better job of creating the story. I was quite disappointed in it.

However, my favorite scene, was when Julia Roberts' character was telling her mom (Streep) to "eat her fucking catfish." and it became a screaming match with "eat the fish, eat the fish, eat the fish," and "I'M NOT HUNGRY." and swears and...it was great.

Even though this movie kind of sucked, I would recommend seeing it. At least once. Maybe not on the big screen, since I wouldn't even pay $5.00 to see that again, but maybe once it's available on netflix or DVD/BlueRay. Watch it then, at least once. Just so you can see and appreciate the actors/actresses that took part in it, and their roles of the film. They were ALL very good.

OH! I almost forgot!!! I went to see this with my lovely friend, Catie, and she is DEFINITELY Margo Martindale's character (the fat auntie). Like, really. She's SO her! We couldn't stop laughing!!

I give August: Osage County 3 out of 10.

The Wolf and Mitty

I have decided this year that, being a film student, I should invest in more movies and cinema experiences. Since I made that choice, I have also decided that I should review and rate them, and why not do so where all may be able to see?
In the last two weeks I have seen both The Wolf of Wall Street and The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I will now share my personal opinion on both of these films. However, just to be clear, I am not comparing or contrasting these two. They are way too vitally different from each other for me to properly do that anyway. With that being said, I shall move on.

The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill, was not what I expected (to say the least). To be honest, I did not pay close attention to the listed rating nor did I notice the reasons behind why it had such a high rating. I wanted to see it for mainly two reasons; Leonardo DiCaprio, and Leonardo DiCaprio in a suit. I was in for quite a shock, however. For one, almost every other word out of anyone on screen were curse words, there was vulgar nudity, and a large focus on drug abuse. If I had only paid attention to the ratings, I would have probably been more prepared for what I witnessed. Would I still have gone if I had known? Yes, and Here's why: Although I did not quite enjoy the over-use of swears and nudity, DiCaprio did (as he always does) a phenomenal job! If anyone out there is a DiCaprio fan, I would recommend they view The Wolf of Wall Street at least once.
Now, from a film-student's point of view, this movie definitely had it's moments. It was beautifully directed, and there were amazing close-ups and a variety of other camera shots that clearly emphasized on whatever needed to be focused on. The way the scenes transitioned, or how the narration was done were just amazing! I realize this is a rather vague review, and I apologize for that. It's been over a week, so the film isn't quite fresh in my memory anymore. Also, I don't want to spoil anything for those who have yet to see it.
I give The Wolf of Wall Street  a 6.5 out of 10. 

Now for The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I was quite hesitant to see this movie. I have never been a Ben Stiller fan. The roles he normally plays are usually in sick-humour films, and I am just not into that. However, I do not believe I have words to begin to express how fantastic that movie is. The story starts off in Mitty's home with him fiddling on his computer, debating whether or not to send a "wink" to a someone on e-Harmony. Unfortunately, the "wink" doesn't go through. so he calls the website's tech support for help. Although the beginning seems like it could be insignificant, it later ties in to the rest of the story. Every detail or transition or scene-change is smoothly done, sometimes in very subtle and/or unique ways. I often had a difficult time deciphering between was was the movie's reality and what was going on inside Mitty's head, which I'm sure was how Stiller wanted it. There are quite a bit of long-shot camera angles, perhaps to signify how unimportant Mitty believes he is. His apparent insignificance is rather ironic as the story progresses, since it later shows that he was part of the very backbone of his company.
From a film-student perspective, there are tons of beautiful landscape shots, close-up and not, and just intense panning and tilting shots and...it's just amazing. There really are no words. One of my favorite moments in the entire film was when Mitty trades his childhood toy for a long-board in Iceland and skateboards down a long winding road on a gradual hill towards a small village. The way they shot that scene; the camera angles, the movement...it just made me feel like I was the one skateboarding in Iceland. A very cool feeling.
Like I said, I have never been a fan of Ben Stiller, but he is a spectacular director. I wish this had been the first movie I had seen of him. If it had, my whole opinion of him would be entirely different.
I give The Secret Life of Walter Mitty a 8.5 out of 10.