The Longest Week

Hello readers. It has indeed been a long week. I certainly wish I could post more than once a week, but my schedule does not afford me that luxury at the moment. Now then, onto business.

The Academy Awards have come and gone, but I'm still watching movies... getting ready for next year I suppose. First up was Michael Clayton, starring George Clooney, Tom Wilkinson, and Tilda Swinton. This tightly scripted thriller delivers brilliant dialog and character acting on a silver platter. For me, Clooney alternates between a master of his craft and an annoying version of himself. To be frank, George Clooney is a rather arrogant man with a big mouth and a penchant for expressing his "political genius" about issues he's not even mildly qualified to comment on. In Ocean's 11 for example, he just plays a slightly less irritating version of himself. But, in films like Syriana, and indeed Michael Clayton, he becomes the character he is playing. This unique quality is achieved by only the finest actors, so I still must tip my hat to Mr. Clooney. Yet the film isn't really about him per se. The script is written so that at the very least, Clooney, Wilkinson, Swinton, and Pollack are all deep and interesting characters with something to say. Clayton stands out amongst the rest of the Best Picture Nominees as the only taught thriller that will truly keep your heart pounding. While I'm talking about awards, Swinton absolutely did not deserve her award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role. She was hardly in the film, and appeared on screen for less than 20 minutes. Her character was indeed interesting, but she said and did very little. Hardly a performance worthy of such a high honor. On a final note, the last few minutes were immensely rewarding, and if it doesn't brighten your day, I don't know what will.

I also checked out Con Air and Crimson Tide in their Blu-ray debut. Con Air is probably the best dude-movie ever with its cliche one-liners, ridiculous fight scenes, stock characters, and massive explosions. The film is a veritable star parade, featuring Nicholas Cage, Steve Buscemi, John Cusack, Dave Chapelle, and John Malkovich. The story is fairly simple- Cage is an army ranger in the wrong place at the wrong time. He's sent to prison for an accidental crime. On his way to freedom, his plane is hijacked by a ruthless criminal (Malkovich). Of course, Cage decides to save the day and leave a wake of dead bodies and destruction behind him. Many critics described Con Air as "big, dumb fun" and I wholeheartedly agree. This film certainly didn't win any awards, but it embodies one of the reasons people like films in the first place- entertainment. If you are good at suspending disbelief and reveling in its silliness, Con Air is a blast (haha, see what I did there? Blast. Like, explosion. No? Fine, whatever, I tried.)

Crimson Tide was made just after the Cold War ended and the threat of Soviet Russia was still fresh in our minds. Gene Hackman plays the old and bitter captain of a Nuclear Submarine and Denzel Washington plays his XO. When a partial transmission to fire their weapons comes in, Hackman wants to fire and Washington wants to wait for the rest of the message. The film basically is set up as a metaphorical boxing ring, with Hackman and Washington duking it out. These two giants of cinema squeeze every ounce of intensity out of the script and make it well worth repeat viewings.

Just before posting, I had the opportunity to watch The Last King of Scotland. I've seen bits and pieces of this movie, but I've never had a chance to really sit down and absorb it. Forest Whitaker stars as Idi Amin, the ruthless, cruel, and criminally insane "president" of Uganda in the 1970's. James McAvoy plays the presidential physician, and gives us a unique perspective into Amin's madness. Whitaker gives the performance of a lifetime, and McAvoy, speaking in his native Scottish accent, sounds smooth, natural, and legitimately frightened for his life. This film does have a number of minor flaws, but it's certainly worth watching for the characters, especially if you're not familiar with the story of Idi Amin. Amin was responsible for between 300,000 and 500,000 deaths, and his criminal regime is partially to blame for the continuing violence in the region. A word of warning however- this film is not for the faint of heart. I've seen plenty of violence in my day, but a few of the images and scenes were extremely graphic and made me squirm.

I write mainly my thoughts and opinions about pop culture, life, or society. This is not intended to be a journal about my personal life, but tonight I can't resist. I'd like to give a quick shout out to a good friend who invites me to her parties even though I don't drink and many consider me to be a bit on the antisocial side. I appreciate it... Cheers to you.

Oh, and one more thing. Please keep Eduardo in your thoughts and prayers, even if you aren't an Arsenal fan. He is going to be out for 9 months or more after suffering one of the most horrific football injuries I've ever seen. Eduardo is a fine athlete and a very classy footballer, and I do sincerely hope that he makes a speedy recovery.

I'm out.

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