Zero Dark Thirty

Kathryn Bigelow, 2012


4/5

The C.I.A. is working tirelessly to track down the world's biggest fugitive, Osama bin Laden. Intelligence is pulled from anywhere and everywhere, and Maya (Jessica Chastain) is at the forefront of the pursuit. This film is a reunion of director Kathryn Bigelow and writer Mark Boal, who won 6 Oscars for their work on The Hurt Locker in 2008. Very much like The Hurt Locker, this film is set in the Post-9/11 Middle East.

Jessica Chastain is introduced immediately, and you really witness the progression of an innocent bright eyed intelligence agent to one who becomes affected, sleep-deprived, and unwilling to regress. A woman who will stop at nothing to track down the #1 target. Maya is the movie version of Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) from Homeland. Shes a type A personality who similarly wouldn't be able to maintain a romantic relationship because she is so heavily committed to her occupation. Chastain bears a resemblance to Bryce Dallas Howard, but she separates herself from her beautiful red-headed counterpart with her distinct acting chops.

The camera work in Zero Dark is near-perfect. A lot of impressive shots behind things, camera sitting on a desk, shots with corner of building in the right frame, birds-eyes of daylight marketplaces. Some of the cinematography early in the film reminded me of Soderburgh's style of clean shots in narrow spaces. These clean shots are constantly juxtaposed with some gritty images of torture huts, back-room offices. Some of the most impressive work came at the climax. While film-making is usually dependent on adequate lighting I have no idea how they were able to work with such an absence of it. When they descend upon the Pakistani Compound, you feel like you are there with them. I was literally standing up watching these events unfold. You obviously know whats going to happen, but knowing almost creates this noticeably pronounced anticipatory feeling. The brilliant application of tension in Zero Dark is very reminiscent to the techniques used in The Hurt Locker.

While I believe some of the elements in the film are fit for criticism (the intelligence gathering in the middle of the film seemed to get a bit monotonous), it still returns to form quickly. The story of killing Bin Laden is so compelling that it deserves the cinematic treatment. It's a story we'll be telling our grandchildren we witnessed. The assault on Bin Laden's compound is the modern-day equivalent to Hitler's Eagles Nest.

This is 40

Judd Apatow, 2012


2/5

A.K.A. This is 40 Minutes Too Long

          This sort-of sequel to Knocked Up focuses on the life of Pete (Paul Rudd) and Debbie (Leslie Mann). It is a fly-on-the-wall observation of a married couple reaching their mid-point in their lives. Watching the exhaustive process of raising two girls (with one in her pubescent phase), managing careers, and keeping the passion alive is enough to intimidate any young couple in their early years of marriage.
         While I LOVED Knocked Up, this film had some really endearing features but I believe it fell victim to Apatow's typical treatment of letting a film run too long. If this film ran 90 minutes instead of 134, I feel it would have succeeded. Some of the jokes and pop-culture references feel too forced, as if Seth MacFarlane were one of the punch-up writers. 40 also has that Big-Hollywood liberal plastic family feel to it. I would think that married couples in their mid-40's living in Oklahoma will have a tough time relating to the trials and tribulations of a family living in the perfect house and driving the $70,000 BMW and Land-Rover. I found myself laughing late into the film, but really only holding on to the scattered comedic moments and while having trouble adapting to the dramatic elements. Unfortunately because of all of the quick-cuts and choppy-edits, you never really get a chance to maintain footing. That's disappointing, because along the way there is some really great acting by Leslie Mann, Albert Brooks and John Lithgow.
          Apatow clearly has a lot to say, and this may be his most personal film. While I do think there is plenty of fat that could have been trimmed, I appreciate this film in the sense that Judd gave you some access to his own life, more than in his earlier films. He's the guy with the cupcake problem, the guy who sits on the toilet phantom-pooping with his iPad, and the guy who is trying to keep the love alive. Maybe we just didn't need it all at once.

Wreck-It Ralph

Rich Moore, 2012


3/5

Ralph (John C. Reilly) is sick of being the "bad guy" in his popular arcade game while watching good guy Fix-It Felix (Jack McBrayer) get all of the praise. After feeling ignored when he didn't receive an invitation to the 30th anniversary of the video game, Ralph decides to rebel against the long-enforced arcade rules to try to prove himself as the good guy. If Tron and Toy Story had a baby, it would be Wreck-it. The film is loaded with eye candy that at times make you feel like you're playing Candyland on acid. Sarah Silverman really delivers the stand-out performance as Vanellope. Wreck-it feels nostalgic, with recognizable video game characters from my youth. The vibrant visuals are augmented by an 8-Bit soundtrack. While Wreck-it is imaginative, positive, and loaded with familiar cultural references - it ultimately feels formulaic and predictable. But that's okay, because there's really something in it for everyone.

Oldboy

Chan-Wook Park, 2003


5/5

          Dae-su Oh is suddenly abducted and put in solitary confinement in what looks like a run-down motel room for 15 years. He is released without knowing why he was imprisoned. What follows is a pursuit of answers, and revenge. Chan-Wook Park delivers a masterpiece that is so well made, that it really sets the bar high for the Revenge-film genre. Every single element in Oldboy from the Cinematography (Chung-hoon Chung), Editing (Kim Sang-beom) to the Music (Jo Yeong-wok) is so impeccable and they all maintain a noticeable presence as you watch. There are fight sequences that will remind you of The Raid: Redemption coupled with imaginative visual elements reminiscent of Watchmen. The Korean landscape in Oldboy is bleak and paints a picture of a very scary world. A world in which if you live recklessly enough and without conscience, there are dark forces out there that can literally sweep you up in the blink of an eye. In Oldboy that sweep happened to come with a beautiful elevated shot as the camera ascended above a telephone booth on the rainy night streets. The artfully crafted blood & violence in the film is not overdone, very much unlike the over-gratuitous gore in Kill Bill. There were a lot of twists in the story-line that I didn't see coming, and the climax of this film is among the best I've ever seen. This film packs a punch, and does not dumb itself down. It will stick with you. I ended up watching it twice in one day and it was even better the second time around. I was very disappointed to hear that Spike Lee is filming a remake of this. Makes me wonder why we can't just let good foreign movies sit in the form in which they were originally created (Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Let the Right One In).