Carriers

Carriers is an interesting movie.  Set post a viral pandemic apocalypse, it's neither an adventure movie, nor horror movie.  The movie I think it's closest to is The Road (although it's not as good as that).  It's about two twenty-something brothers and their two girlfriends (sort of) on a long, post-apocalypse road-trip to the boy's families remote summer vacation spot.  Unlike The Road, this movie is set just after the apocalypse (the virus is still a real threat), and survival isn't the biggest focus of the movie.  It's actually a movie about the realtionship between siblings, and the fact that the setting is so horrific just highlights and intensifies all the usual complications between brothers.  A strong B.

The Motorcycle Diaries

The Motorcycle Diaries is a lovely movie about youth and idealism.  I saw it in theaters many years ago.  It tells the story of two well-to-do Argentinian friends, Ernesto, a medical student, and Alberto, a "wandering scientist" who decide to go on an 8000 km motorcycle trip across South America in 1951. On their long journey, the pair encounter real poverty and injustice for the first time, and political ideologies start to take shape. The word "romance" actually means "adventure", and this is a very romantic movie. The acting, music and directing are all excellent, and the settings are astonishingly beautiful. Based on Ernesto's diaries of the experience, his is a slow, subtle, introspective movie that tells a romantic story of Ernesto becoming the man history knows him as, the communist revolutionary Che Guevara.  A+

One complaint: the subtitles go very fast sometimes.

Angela

My friend Meghan introduced me to this weird awesome movie many years ago.  Angela is the story of a strange little girl trying to make sense out of a senseless world. Angela is very worried that the Devil might come to take her little sister away. The girls mother is seriously mentally ill, and the girls are mostly left to themselves to find their way through a confusing world. I don't really know what else to say without giving hings away. The movie is beautifully directed and both the little girls are excellent in their roles. It's slow paced and a little creepy, but very moving and sad. This is for the sort of person who likes indy movies. It's not a horror movie or a blockbuster, just a small movie about how minds work. A-

It's not available the stream instantly, but if you like this, you'll also really like Innocence.

Brooklyn Babylon

Brooklyn Babylon is one of my favorite movies.  Many other people refer to it as a retelling of Romeo and Juliet, but it's not.  It's a retelling of Solomon and Sheba.  You should watch this movie, even though it's actually not that great.  If for no other reason, then watch it to hear the AMAZING sound track by The Roots.  If you don't know The Roots, I don't think we can be friends anymore.

The movie tells the story of a  Rastafarian hip hop artist named Solomon, played beautifully by Tariq Trotter (aka Black Thought of The Roots) and a chasidic girl named Sarah who live in the same Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, but are divided by family, religion, race, class, and politics.  After they meet in a traffic accident, the two begin a secret romance in defiance of both of their circles.

Now, I'm not usually much of a romance fan, but the combination of the Song of Songs, The Roots, and a girl named Sarah in love with a gorgeous, contemplative, black artist hit all my buttons.  While Tariq Trotter is excellent, the actress who plays Sara is not very good.  Several supporting roles are outstanding, including Sarah's grandmother as a less-than-Haredi European with progressive notions and Sol's mother, a hard-working West Indian woman who wants to best for her son. The music and art direction are both lovely.  I give this movie an A, but if you're not a Jewish girl named Sara who dates a contemplative West Indian artist, it's probably actually a C-.

ps: If anyone has any idea where I could acquire the soundtrack to this movie, you'd be my new hero.

8: The Mormon Propostion

This documentary came highly recommended, but I was somewhat disappointed.  It was really biased and one sided, but not in a fun "preaching to the choir" way like a Michael Moore movie.  This documentary doesn't have the faith but won't have the fun.  It was dull and poorly organized.  It was just poorly made propaganda (don't get me wrong, I agree with its propaganda), and it's not really worth watching.  For all that, it's not actively bad...just forgettable.  C+

Making SNL

Both 30 Rock: Season 1 and Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip: The Complete Series  are "behind the scenes" shows about shows very much like Saturday Night Live.  While 30 Rock is straight comedy, Studio 60 is more of a drama. Both of them have amazing writers. Studio 60 is written by Aaron Sorkin (West Wing) and 30 Rock is written by Tina Fey.

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip is the more serious of the two shows.  Like The West Wing, it's witty and biting political commentary, and it holds up well.  It's also quite funny, but it's not a laugh riot.  It does that magical thing that only Aaron Sorkin shows can do...it leaves me wanting to roll my eyes and laugh and cry all at the same time.  It's such a shame that this show was canceled, but it does go down hill in the last few episodes.  Like a lot of shows, it forgets what makes it good, and thinks I care about the characters personal lives. A except the last few episodes, which rate a B.

This show is hilarious.  The first season is pee-your-pants funny, and the other seasons are still laugh-out-loud good.  Alec Baldwin is dead on, and Tina Fey never fails.  Tracy Morgan, while sometimes a little goofy, is also very funny.  This show is fast, smart, and relevant.  One reviewer on Netflix says of 30 Rock, "there is a certain segment of population that likes what I like to call "New York Humor" It will tickle your fancy if you like things like Woody Allen, Seinfeld, and the like."  Funny story: When my parents were first dating, my dad's family used to call my mother (who is from Philadelphia) a "New Yorker" because they thought "Jew" was a slur.  If you don't understand why that's hilarious, you might not like 30 Rock.  The show is reliably funny...even the weaker episodes are still great.    A+ for Season 1, A for other seasons (with an occasional B episode)


Also interesting, this documentary about Saturday Night Live: Live from New York: The First 5 Years. This IS NOT a clips show, it's mostly interviews.

Into Eternity

I just saw this amazing documentary. It's not yet available on Netflix, but you can watch it on YouTube. It's about building an underground repository for nuclear waste in Finland, but it's really about the philosophical implications of trying to make something that will last 100,000 years (that's more than 5 times longer than the cave paintings at Lascaux; 20 times as long as the pyramids at Giza). It's haunting and beautiful, and everyone has these Finnish accents, which makes it seem extra ethereal. Highly recommended. A+

Immortality

I have a strange fondness for fiction about immortal creatures.  Preferably, not vampires, just humans that happen to live forever.  One of my very favorites  is Jerome Bixby's The Man from Earth.  It's a lovely, small movie that seems like it was probably written as a play.  It's entirely driven by dialog and good acting.  It takes place almost entirely in a small cabin.  A group of friends who are all academics are sitting around chatting, wishing their friend John a fond farewell.  He tells them an amazing story.  I can't really say more without giving anything away, but I've watched this movie several times, with many different people, and it's always been a hit.  (With my weird intellectual friends....this isn't a movie for everyone)  A+

 Tuck Everlasting is a cute kids movie based on a book I haven't read.  It stars that girl from Gilmore Girls.  It also features Ben Kingsley and Sissy Spacek.  It's a pretty straight-forward story about a girl whose over-protective parents keep her locked away.  She gets lost in the woods, and runs into an immortal boy.  Teen romance ensues.  B for adults, but probably A- for kids.











Highlander: Season 1 

When I was in high school, this was my best friend's favorite show (although, I think the tastiness of Adrian Paul had more than a little to do with that.) The show is interesting, but I don't feel like it does a very good job of capturing the crushing ennui of immortality.  The show goes downhill after season 2.  B  













Natural Born Killers

Natural Born Killers
I love this movie.  Woody Harrelson and Juliet Lewis are both astounding.  While some people complain that this movie glorifies violence, I rather view it as an essay on the glorification of violence by our popular culture.  The movie is visually exciting, and the music is amazing.  The soundtrack has been in constant rotation in my playlist for nearly 10 years.  All that being said, the movie is VERY violent, which I understand is a big turnoff for some people.
I give it an A.

Happy Accidents

Happy Accidents is a another cute little romantic comedy with magical/sci-fi undertones.  Since I'm a fan of the genre, and a big fan of Vincent D'Onofrio, I checked it out.  It's good, but not great. The pacing is a little slow, and D'Onofrio's character, Sam, is a little too cute for words.  However, the relationship between them unfolds in a believable way, and the uncertainty about whether Sam is a time traveler or delusional gives a nice edge.  B+

Amreeka

Amreeka is a relatively typical "coming to America" story with some sweet, funny moments.  It's the story of a single, Palestinian mother and her teenage son who move in with her sister's family in the suburban Midwest after her son starts to get himself into trouble at home.  She gets here at an awkward time, and becomes a target for American's resentment about the wars in the mideast.  The acting and the cinematography are both very good, and the plot never veers into emotional melodrama.  This is a small movie and individuals making their won way; it is not a sweeping epic about war, or racism, or tolerance.  The lead actress is particularly good.  B

Network: This movie used to be fiction

Made in 1976 (that makes it 2 years older than me!), Network is the story of Fox News.  Well, maybe not exactly that.  It's about a reputable news anchor who looses his cool and starts ranting uncontrollably on TV.  He coins the phrase "I'm mad as Hell, and I'm not going to take it anymore!"

Everyone thinks he'll be fired, but it turns out (no surprise to us in 2011) that bile-filled invective makes for grea ratings, and he becomes a phenom.  Corporate media intrigue follows.

Although it no longer seems so implausible, this Oscar winning drama continues to hold up well.  I watched it for the first time only recently, and I very much enjoyed it.  I can't exactly imagine what it would have been like in 1976, but I expect it was astonishingly good then.  B+