Atonement

Atonement, I would have to say, is my favorite movie I've seen since I started Film Fancy. Considering I've probably seen (though not formally reviewed) 100+ films in that time period, that's saying a lot. But Atonement really takes the cake. It absolutely deserves its 13 BAFTA, 6 Golden Globe, and 7 Oscar nominations. It won Best Motion Picture at the BAFTA and Golden Globe Awards. Both McAvoy and Knightley give great performances as awkward sweethearts, as passionate lovers, and as tortured souls when separated from each other. Also, Saoirse Ronan gives an almost chilling performance as young Briony. The film seems light and sweet at first, but underneath can be felt a deep foreboding. Something is about to go very wrong.

Briony is the precocious younger sister of the ravishing Cecilia (Knightley). After an explicit letter from Robbie, the housekeeper's son, mistakenly makes its way into Cecilia's hands, the two realize their love for each other. Unfortunately, Briony, the messenger, read the letter. And later she walks in on the two lovers during a passionate episode in the library. Shocked and confused by what she has seen and read, a whirlwind of events later leads Briony to accuse Robbie of crimes he never committed. He is sent away to prison, and then to World War I still raging in Europe, irrevocably changing Cecilia and Robbie's lives forever. Although at the time Briony had no idea the gravity of her actions, she later sees that her false accusation broke her sister's heart, creating an irreparable rift between them, and ruined a good man's life. As she grows into a woman, Briony spends her life attempting desperately, though in vain, to atone for her sin.

McAcoy's performance is really outstanding. I really enjoyed his performance, as well as Knightley's. It was amazingly refreshing to see Knightley as a character who's actually a "grown-up" instead of a girl on the edge of womanhood. McAvoy and Knightley really do light up the screen together. The cinematography is beautiful, the settings and the lighting as well. Oddly enough, the fact that Atonement is a British film can actually be seen in the cinematography. Director Joe Wright has been nominated for several awards for Atonement, and with good reason. Child actress Ronan is really fabulous. On the whole Atonement is very, very good. If you haven't seen it, you really should. It's a beautiful, beautiful love story. Heartwrenching but a treat to watch. Very rich.

Conclusion: This is going on the official Unmissables list. It's captivating, it draws you in, it lets you feel what Briony feels, what Robbie and Cecilia feel. If you're old enough, or mature enough to see the sex scene, then go see it. In the theater, rent it, or illegally download it, it's a must-see.

Rated: R for disturbing war images, language and some sexuality.

See the trailer

Trivia:

• James McAvoy considered the script the best he had ever read.
• The opening film of the 2007's Venice Film Festival. Director Joe Wright, at 35, is the youngest director to have a film open this prestigious event.
• As Robbie is taken by the police, Briony peers through a window decorated with figures in stained glass. One stained glass figure is labeled Matilda. This is an allusion to a famous children's poem by Hilaire Belloc entitled "Matilda", whose first line runs, "Matilda told such dreadful lies, it made one gasp and stretch one's eyes". By the end of the poem, Matilda has burned to death, having called wolf one time too many.

27 Dresses

Starring Katherine Heigl and James Marsden

27 Dresses is your average romantic comedy. It's formulaic, it's predictable, and most of its characters are characters used in every romantic comedy. But. Heigl and Marsden make a great team, bringing out the best in each other, and there were some scenes where I was laughing pretty hard.

Jane has been in 27 weddings. And she's never been the bride. Jane is a bridesmaid. The perfect bridesmaid. She's the bride's best friend, the hairdresser, the dress model, the do-everything person. Jane's real job is assistant manager at a company. She happens to be madly in love with her boss, George. Jane has a sister named Tess who has come for a short little visit. Unfortunately, Jane introduces Tess to George, the two hit it off, and all of a sudden, they're getting married. And Jane has to plan the wedding. Into the picture comes Kevin, a writer for the Commitments column of the local paper who writes the most poetic things about weddings. In reality, however, Kevin is a bitter, cynical guy who hates weddings and thinks they're stupid. But Kevin finds Jane's perennial bridesmaid situation intriguing and, unbeknownst to her, decides to write a story on her.

Things get crazy. Jane is in love with George, who is marrying her sister Tess, who is lying to George, who doesn't know Jane loves him and Kevin is the perfect guy for Jane and Kevin likes Jane but Jane doesn't realize it because she's too busy pining after her sister's fiance. What can I say? It's classic. Romantic comedy that is. Heigl, best known for her role in Knocked Up and ABC's Grey's Anatomy, really shines. She's proven herself to be a great romantic comedy actress, and she does show a lot of potential for other roles; I just hope she takes advantage of that. Marsden is great too. His breakout role was in X-Men as Cyclops, and has since then managed to pick chronically blockbuster films to add to his resume (X-Men series, The Notebook, Superman, Hairspray, and Enchanted). I'd go to see a film just because Marsden makes an appearance, I enjoy his performances that much. 27 had some cute concepts, like Jane keeping all of her 27 hideous bridesmaid dresses, and Marsden's character was interesting. So to wrap it up, on to the conclusion...

Conclusion: Fun and entertaining, but predictability took away from that. Marsden and Heigl are great on screen together so if you like chick flicks, go ahead and check it out.

Rated: PG-13 for language, some innuendo and sexuality.

See the trailer

Trivia:

• The wardrobe department reported that their initial designs for the dresses all looked too good on Katherine Heigl because of her figure, and they were hard-pressed to design bridesmaids dresses that would look bad on her.

Across the Universe

Ever wanted the experience of doing drugs like Acid or E and having cool psychedelic hallucinations, but are too afraid to actually do the drugs? Well now you don't have to! Just go to your local Blockbuster and rent Across the Universe. But seriously now...Across the Universe tells the story of America during the 1960's, the Vietnam War, the drugs, the revolution, all of it using the songs of the greatest rock band in history, The Beatles.

In England, in the sixties, a young man named Jude sets off for America to search out his long-lost father. What he finds are the drugs and revolutions, peace and war, freedom and free love of the sixties. Jude meets Max, a college dropout who just wants to have fun, symbolizing the face of young American men. Through Max, Jude meets his friend's sister, Lucy. The two fall in love and would like to live happily ever after. But when Lucy gets involved with some not-so-peaceful radicals and Max gets drafted and sent to Vietnam, things are going to change.

Across the Universe is the tale of young men living and dying, the tale of young love , the tale of the confusion of the sixties. It's extremely symbolic and although you can enjoy it without knowing much about the Beatles or the Sixties, it's better understood if you know something about both. The entire movie, it's style, the songs, the color, represents the sixties. You really do feel like you're on some kind of drug trip, but it's a very interesting way to present this story since you're supposed to be seeing it through Jude's eyes. And this is what he would see.

Conclusion: Very enjoyable, but if you're not into the Beatles or musicals or the sixties or mass psychedelia, I'd steer clear. (Kids might find it frightening or especially confusing.)

See the preview

Rated: PG-13 for some drug content, nudity, sexuality, violence and language

Trivia:

• This film was released in the United States on John Lennon's birthday (October 9th).
• Prudence, a character in the film, first enters the apartment through the window, a reference to "She Came in through the Bathroom Window" by the Beatles.
• he rooftop concert toward the end of the film is a reference to the rooftop concert of the Beatles atop Apple Records' headquarters, their final public appearance. The Beatles' concert was also interrupted by the police.
  

The Unmissables Vol. V

Numbers 41 through 50 coming right up...Timeless classics, whose beauty and inspiration have never gone out of date, and some new, soon-to-be classics, that will live on in film history...

The Godfather Part I - Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, The Godfather is a classic of our time, starring Marlon Brando and Al Pacino in his first movie role. The story of the life of mafia families spans several generations. 8 Academy Award Nominations, 3 Wins, 5 Golden Globe Awards

42. Clerks I and II - Okay, this one is more of a cult classic, but Kevin Smith has created two characters now forever immortalized in his films, Jay and his heterosexual life mate, Silent Bob. The hilarity and raunch is matched only in its wit and profundity. (and maybe its profanity as well). Winner of 2 Cannes Film Festival and 2 Sundance Film Festival Awards.



43. Walk the Line - Joaquin Phoenix steals the film as the tortured Johnny Cash and his road to music stardom, his fall into drugs, and his agony and guilt over the past. Fabulously done, and the soundtrack is great. Nominated for 5, winner of 1 Academy Award, winner of 4 Golden Globe Awards.



44. The Departed - A troubled undercover cop must penetrate the criminal underworld undetected; a crooked cop is already inside the police department; the good cop is trying to uncover the mole inside his department; and a sadistic crime lord is about to bring it all down around them. Martin Scorsese, Leo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlburg, and Jack Nicholson. Nominated for 5, winner of 4 Academy Awards; recipient of 47 other film awards.



45. Borat - Borat has come to America "for make benefit glorious nation of Kazakhstan", to make a documentary that will change comedy and film and the people Borat meets forever. Gloriously acted by Mr. Sasha Baron Cohen. Nominated for 1 Academy Award, Winner of 2 Golden Globes.



46. The Sound of Music - Julie Andrews plays an almost-nun who is sent to nanny a military man's (Christopher Plummer) children in Austria just on the brink of World War II. The Sound of Music is the true story of the singing Von-Trapp family. Winner of 5 Academy Awards.



47. Gone With the Wind - A breathtaking, epic view of the Old South before, during, and after the devastating Civil War. As seen through the eyes of young, vain, foolish Scarlett O'Hara. Also starring Clark Gable. Winner of 10 Academy Awards.



48. My Fair Lady - One of Audrey Hepburn's best films, also starring Rex Harrison. Harrison bets his friend that he can take a homeless girl off the streets and in six months, pass her off as a duchess at the Grand Ball. The homeless girl? Audrey Hepburn. Winner of 8 Academy Awards.



49. Napolean Dynamite - Napolean's crazy life win Grandma, Tina, Pedro, Kip, and Uncle Rico is a tale so un-epic, you'll love it. Hilarity ensues. Starring John Heder and his hilariousness.



50. Grease - A sweet girl and the school bad boy fall in love over the summer, but are surprised to find that they will be attending the same high school. Can their love conquer their reputations and their egos? Starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John, a musical. Nominated of 1 Academy Award, Recipient of 5 Golden Globe Awards.

3:10 To Yuma

Dan Evans has a failing ranch, a family of four to support, a lot of debt on his back, and he's in a hell of a lot of trouble. Ben Wade is a wanted outlaw the railroads want to bring to justice for all the trouble he's caused them. When Evans signs up to help escort Wade to the prison train to Yuma for $200, he has no idea what he's getting himself into. Wade's ruthless gang will stop at nothing to hunt down their leader's captors to free him.

Evans is superbly played by Christian Bale, who gets too little recognition for his phenomenal roles. Russell Crowe plays the part of Ben Wade and the two make a fabulous, fabulous duo. The two onscreen together is beautiful to watch. When Evans' son gets mixed up in the whole affair, things turn from good to bad to ugly. Is Wade really all bad as he claims? He may just be. And there may be no way out for Evans, who becomes more and more trapped as the plot develops.

3:10 to Yuma is a western, but forget Clint Eastwood and John Wayne, this is like nothing you've ever seen. It's a western with new themes, new characters, and a new plot. Who would've thought THAT possible? Great directing and cinematography, and the script and story and plot are all top-notch. By the way, Ben Foster puts on a particularly great show as Wade's cutthroat right-hand man. You might see parts of yourself in these characters (I particularly loved Evans, Bale really nailed him), or you might not. But there are explosions and shoot-em-ups and even a horse chase. It's a guys action film but with enough drama and emotion for girls too. It's a film about reality and heroism and the courage to do what's right. And sometimes doing the right thing isn't just the most difficult, it might be the most dangerous too.

Conclusion: It's got two thumbs up from me and certainly will be on a top-something list of mine.

Rated: R for violence and some language

Trivia:

• Russell Crowe, the director, and the producer, all specifically asked for Christian Bale to play Evans.
• The weekend before shooting was scheduled to wrap, a freak storm dumped nearly 2 feet of snow on the supposedly drought plagued town. Laborers shoveled the snow from the buildings' balconies and roofs and distributed 89 dump trucks worth of dry soil on the ground.

Cloverfield

Prepare for the end of the world as you know it.

It was just a regular day. We planned a surprise part for Rob. He's like, my main dude, but he's leaving for Japan to land a new job. It wasn't that great of a party really, some nasty stuff went down and it kinda went downhill from there you could say. So after there's this big argument between Rob and this girl, there was this explosion. Yeah, I told you it got worse. At first we thought it was another terrorist attack or something, but it wasn't. There were explosions and fires and stuff, we could see it from the roof. We ran out to the street and for a moment, I saw it. It was, well I don't know exactly what it was, but it was huge and it was destroying the city. I thought it was Armageddon. I mean, I thought I was gonna die.

Filmed on a home-movie camera, Cloverfield is about a small group of people who must survive a monster attack on New York City. When you go to see it, be prepared to be scared out of your pants, or at least to wet them. The camera work is shaky and sometimes blurry and sometimes pointed in the wrong direction, but the filmmakers did a crazy-good job on this. I wasn't sure if Cloverfield could live up to J.J. Abrams' hype, but wow, it does. Great choreography and lighting, and the effects were absolutely insane. (I can explain if you saw it and don't understand why I think they're amazing.) I loved the way they used background noise as a soundtrack almost. Deep humming machines, roaring, etc. takes the place of music. Also, the conflict of emotion they're able to evoke from the audience is amazing. Just when you're scared out of your mind, a character will say something utterly offbeat and funny. And you will definitely be scared out of your mind. A New York viewer said he came out of the theater half expecting to see the city in ruins.

Great performances by virtually unknown actors and actresses, really adds to the film and lets you focus on the story. The filmmakers really want you to focus on sounds and the story, so they add elements like blurriness or something when you need to be listening carefully, perhaps to a conversation, that's important to the story. They take a page out of Hitchcock's guide to suspense films and definitely apply the motto "What you don't see is more frightening than what you do see." Anyway, if you won't get annoyed by the shaky camera waving all over the place, go see Cloverfield. Definitely very enjoyable, got a good scare out of me, very well, done, I'd recommend it to the 14-40 age-group since they'll be more likely to be able to handle the seasickness brought on by the camera and still enjoy the film. Most excellent.

Conclusion: See it. Now.

Rated: PG-13 for terror, violence, and some disturbing images (Don't take little kids to see this, okay?)

Trivia:

• The teaser trailer was shot before principal production began with small digital cameras.

• The film has no soundtrack whatsoever.

The Butterfly Effect

A butterfly flapping its wings could cause a tornado miles away

Evan, Kayleigh, Tommy, and Lenny are just four ordinary kids, but when a game goes tragically awry, it changes all of their lives forever. Evan is 20-something and a successful college student when his quest to remember the memories he's repressed is fulfilled. But the memories he can now recall should have been left alone, and when Evan discovers a way to change the past, he thinks he can save his friends. But what Evan doesn't know is that any little change he makes in the past creates and entirely different future. Evan is getting deeper and deeper in and there may be no way back.

Evan is played (surprisingly well) by Ashton Kutcher. He does a great job, although the planes of emotion coming from an actor from movies of the Dude-Where's-My-Car-caliber is entirely unexpected. The same goes for Amy Smart, who is a normally comedic actor, but in Butterfly she seamlessly transitions from heartbreakingly tragic to upbeat prep characters. The chaos theory is a great premise for a movie, although the premise has been polluted by some silly plot factors.

Butterfly is shocking to the max. I mean, seriously disturbing. Keep small children and kids under age 16 away from it. There are a lot of under-the-sheet scenes along with themes like massive drug abuse, animal abuse, child abuse, sexual abuse, child pornography, suicide, a LOT of violence, and sex, so just be aware. This is a very good movie, or at least I was impressed by it. The acting is very very good and the story is just so so heartbreaking.

Conclusion: If you can stomach the strong, well, everything, then go for it.

Rated: R for violence, sexual content, language and brief drug use.

Trivia:

• During one of Evan's "flashback" scenes, he can be heard reading part of Ray Bradbury's short story "A Sound of Thunder". In this story, a group of people travel millions of years into the past to hunt dinosaurs. One of them accidentally steps on and kills a butterfly, which dramatically alters the future.
• Ashton Kutcher did extensive research on psychology, mental disorders, and chaos theory to prepare for his role in this film.

See the trailer here