A is for... [part 2]

Away We Go has an incredible mix of ingredients: A script co-written by Dave Eggers (author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius), directed by Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road), starring the not-hugely-famous-but-always-excellent Maya Rudolph (Saturday Night Live) and John Krasinski (The Office), and featuring an astounding supporting cast that includes Catherine O’Hara, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeff Daniels, Allison Janney, Jim Gaffigan, and more. What’s even more incredible is that all these ingredients blend together into a truly marvelous but very non-traditional romantic comedy. For one thing, Burt (Krasinski) and Verona (Rudolph) are already a couple and expecting their first child. What they don’t know is where they’re going to live--so they set off on a tour of disparate locations (Tucson, Montreal, Miami) where they have friends or relatives, sampling not only different cities and climates but also different families. The social and emotional collisions that follow are sometimes very funny and sometimes heartwrenching. Away We Go starts quietly and, through subtle yet consistently delightful scenes, builds to a surprisingly potent end. This is a gem of a movie, not to be missed. (synopsis provided by Amazon.com)

directed by Sam Mendes

released 2009

All the Things That Go to Make Heaven and Earth (and my movie collection)

I’ve decided due to a lack of content the last half of 2010 – I would try and at least make some effort in making a meme that will last a while and reward the people who foolishly decide to check out my blog to see if I’ve got anything going on.

The rules are pretty simple – I’ve got to put up a movie from my DVD collection for each letter of the alphabet each week – and since picking just one is tough – I’ve made it two movies one on Tuesday the other on Thursday.

I went into a panic when I got to ‘K’, ‘Q’, ‘Y’ and ‘Z’ – I’ve actually had to go into my box of closet movies, consider purchasing films that had been sitting on my want list, digging through my public domain movie box-sets and scrolling up and down my Netflix ratings list to see if I have strong feelings about a film that begins with that letter. I ruled out going with films that double as MST3K episodes – so if you should see one or two that look MST-ish – just know it’s the real deal.

It’s also very tempting to just pick the same films that I frequently have referenced – which in some cases I do – but I will try not to (but a few favorites will be on the list). As I sketched it out – I found a lot of the same – so I scratched out a few letters and re-picked my selections – though some letters I really have no choice – and some letters I still have no clue.

I think this will be a fun way of looking at my movie collection – it might get others thinking of doing a bit of the same – possibly finding out what on your shelf you would’ve picked – or guessing what next week’s picks will be... I guess I also run the risk of everyone rolling their eyes in embarrassment in knowing me – but hell – it’s been a fun ride... ha ha...

And wouldn’t you know it – there are 26 letters in the alphabet and 52 weeks in the year... That means I can at least push out half a year of content – even if it’s a bit of a cheat.

I promise that I will be inspired from time to time to do a real movie review – or rant about something – or maybe do some more interesting stuff – but lately I’ve found that I don’t have much to say about movies (which I knew would be a risk of committing to a movie blog). So, as a consolation prize – you get to stand in front of my DVD shelf and run your fingers across the spines...

Enjoy!

A is for...

A movie that only true horror buffs could love, Army of Darkness is officially part 3 in the wild and wacky Evil Dead trilogy masterminded by the perversely inventive director Sam Raimi, who would later serve as executive producer of the popular syndicated TV series Hercules: The Legendary Journeys. Raimi's favorite actor, Bruce Campbell, returns as Ash (hero of the first two Evil Dead flicks), a hardware-store clerk who is magically transported--along with his beat-up Oldsmobile and a chainsaw attachment for his severed left forearm--to the brutal battlefields of the 14th century. He quickly assumes power (who else in the Middle Ages packs a shotgun and a chainsaw?), and unites his band of medieval knights against the dreaded Army of the Dead. Raimi gleefully subverts almost every horror-movie cliché as he serves up a nonstop parade of blood, gore, and vicious sword-bearing skeletons--an affectionate homage to animator Ray Harryhausen's classic Jason and the Argonauts. The frantic action is fun while it lasts, but even at 80 minutes Army of Darknessnearly wears out its welcome. You know that Raimi can maintain the mayhem for only so long before it grows tiresome, and fortunately this madcap movie quits while it's ahead. (synopsis by Amazon.com)

directed by Sam Raimi

released 1992

Monday Muzak: Children of the Revolution

# is for... [part 2]

The director/producer team that created Trainspotting turn their dynamic cinematic imaginations to the classic science fiction scenario of the last people on Earth. Jim (Cillian Murphy) wakes up from a coma to find London deserted--until he runs into a mob of crazed plague victims. He gradually finds other still-human survivors (including Naomie Harris), with whom he heads off across the abandoned countryside to find the source of a radio broadcast that promises salvation. 28 Days Later is basically an updated version of The Omega Manand other post-apocalyptic visions; but while the movie may lack originality, it makes up for it in vivid details and creepy paranoid atmosphere. 28 Days Later's portrait of how people behave in extreme circumstances--written by novelist Alex Garland (The Beach)--will haunt you afterward. Also featuring Brendan Gleeson (The General, Gangs of New York) and Christopher Eccleston (Shallow Grave, The Others). (synopsis provided by Amazon.com)

directed by Danny Boyle

released 2002

# is for...

Inspired by Chris Marker's acclaimed short film La Jetée (which is included on the DVD Short 2: Dreams), 12 Monkeys combines intricate, intelligent storytelling with the uniquely imaginative vision of director Terry Gilliam. The story opens in the wintry wasteland of the year 2035, where a virulent plague has forced humans to live in a squalid, oppressively regimented underground. Bruce Willis plays a societal outcast who is given the opportunity to erase his criminal record by "volunteering" to time-travel into the past to obtain a pure sample of the deadly virus that will help future scientists to develop a cure. But in bouncing from 1918 to the early and mid-1990s, he undergoes an ordeal that forces him to question his own perceptions of reality. Caught between the dangers of the past and the devastation of the future, he encounters a psychiatrist (Madeleine Stowe) who is initially convinced he's insane, and a wacky mental patient (Brad Pitt in a twitchy Oscar-nominated role) with links to a radical group that may have unleashed the deadly virus. Equal parts mystery, tragedy, psychological thriller, and apocalyptic drama, 12 Monkeys ranks as one of the best science fiction films of the '90s, boosted by Gilliam's visual ingenuity and one of the finest performances of Willis's career. (synopsis provided by Amazon.com)

directed by Terry Gilliam

released 1995

Monday Muzak: Under My Thumb