The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

How does one begin to review a Wes Anderson film? Much to the despair of my friends, I have not seen many of his films. Recently I acquiesced to their persistent desire for me to see The Grand Budapest Hotel. I had to watch it on my laptop, but I'm saving the projector for Moonrise Kingdom.

I love movies that are not comedies, yet humor can be found in nearly every scene. The blank faces, the strange characters of Dmitri, Gustave, and Zero, they all contribute to this overall unbelievable setting. Gustave H is this renowned hotel manager who has all these lovers. When one dies, she leaves behind this painting- an act that outrages the family and sole heir (Dmitri). Gustave steals the painting, is arrested, escapes prison, and makes his way back to the Budapest with the help of Zero, who is basically his successor in the line of hotel managers. A lot of other stuff happens, but eventually a second will is found that leaves all of Madame D.'s fortune to Gustave (along with the Budapest).

My favorite scenes are of Zero running. Any scene where someone runs is funny, really. Also, when Dmitri is shooting Gustave's "candy ass" and everyone ends up shooting at each other. Then Bill Murray comes onto the scene and everything is better. I really liked how they channeled the role of the hotel manager into the movie. It is a stereotype that somehow adds to the unique quality of the film. Everything is quick and I just don't really know how to describe it. I think I'd watch anything with Adrien Brody, though I do think Ralph Fiennes is underrated (I wish more people had seen Coriolanus). Hopefully Moonrise Kingdom will be outside this weekend. Annie was on when I got up this morning and it really just made my day.

Random Harvest (1942)

I'm almost in tears sitting at my desk after having watched this movie. There are no words. It is one of the most emotional movies I've seen from this era. I'll try to expound later, but I don't think I could 
possibly do it justice. 

They Drive by Night (1940)

In a very Bogie mood today. Watched They Drive by Night on TCM's Watch app. It's the story of the Fabrini brothers' quest to work on their own driving trucks for delivering goods. However, the life of a truck driver is filled with complications: sleep deprivation, no work, and leaving the wife at home for long periods of time. The brothers do get a break, but it all falls to pieces when Paul (Bogart) falls asleep at the wheel of the truck, totals the truck, and loses his right arm in the accident. Joe (George Raft) makes it his mission to provide for Paul, Pearl (Paul's wife), and himself. After reconnecting with an old friend, Joe finds himself becoming a successful office man and a job for Paul.

Then the dames come in. See, Joe's been seeing this girl named Cassie (definition of gumption). Turns out Joe's boss' wife has got a thing for him. It's the same old story: married dame wants husbands employee, so she kills husband to get husband out of the way and appoints employee to partner of the business. Once said employee finds out about the deception, dame tries to blame the murder on employee-turned-partner.

Then she goes nuts. Cassie (Ann Sheridan) stays gold. She knows Joe would never kill anyone because she loves him. Thankfully, while on trial, dame loses it and confesses to the murder. Joe decides to quit the business he's been running since he doesn't feel like he deserves the success, but Cassie, Paul, and the wonderful employees convince him he's wrong in a very moving scene.

This movie made me sad at first. It defined all the struggling actresses, writers, truck drivers, innovators, and anyone else who's ever tried to make it big on their own. The worst thing about being told you can't do something is when things turn worse for you after you've shunned everyone's opinion.

LOOK AT HIS PRECIOUS SMILING FACE! Oh the rarity.

But Joe certainly found out what he was made of. He packed down his pride for Paul's sake and went to work for another man rather than himself. Maybe that was the most painful part of the movie: seeing the perseverance of one's determination come to a screeching halt because of forces unseen.

Only it didn't. Joe rolled with punches. It may seemed like he wouldn't get all he wanted out of life, but he turned it into a successful opportunity to be a better man for Cassie, Paul, Pearl, and himself. He refused the advances of his employer's wife when a lesser man would have succumbed to them. I admired both Joe and Paul's characters throughout the entire film. May watch some of Bogart's more villainous films later on, though it was so good to see him smile and show some of his less cynical side.

X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)

So I recently saw the latest X-Men movie (date-ish?). When I first heard it was coming out I was very excited, but put off going since I really wasn't too sold on another movie with Wolverine as the star player (even though it makes sense). Luckily, I was lulled into the theater at 9:40 pm because of my love for James McAvoy and Jennifer Lawrence.

I was confused at first. Didn't Charles die? Why is Young Charles walking? It probably did not help that we were a few minutes late. After a while, though, things began to make sense. I had never been a huge X-Men fan. I disliked the whole Jean + Logan story. This movie was definitely a change of pace for Logan, who has always been against the idea of united mutants. Seeing the younger generation of mutants working together with the older generation was incredibly rewarding because it reminded you of their struggles from the beginning. Presently, these sentinel things are at war with the X crew as the sentinels try to destroy their existence. Logan, Charles, Erik, Kitty, Bobby, Storm, and company are pushed onto a mountain trying to escape these machines. The only way they can possibly win this war is for Logan to go back in time and stop it.

So he does. Kitty puts Logan's mind back to the 1970's to find Charles, Erik, and Raven. His mission is to unite them against Dr. Bolivar Trask, who wants to take over the power of mutants (he's responsible for the whole sentinel debacle). I had a hard time getting over the fact that Trask is played by Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister). See, after the very first Erik, Raven, and Charles incident (X-Men First Class), Charles lost everything. He lost Raven, the students from the school (Vietnam), and his best friend (Erik). When Logan went back to 1972, he found a Charles that had lost hope for people and mutants alike. Long story short: they all banded together for the good of the future. Even though Erik still basically betrayed everyone.
Yes, the action was good. There was just enough to keep it rolling, yet not enough to make me fall asleep. The 1970's setting was fabulous (the curtains, the suits, the pants legs) It pissed me off that all the previous movies were basically all for nothing, but the fact that everyone lives free from conflict is pretty nice. Even for those who are not X-Men movie fans need to see this movie because of that hope. I forgot that Charles Xavier's life was devoted to showing people that we can believe in one another. In the first few X-Men movies we saw that his wisdom had allowed him to mentor others to live free from hate and violence although it may be justified. In X-Men: First Class, we saw that the same perspective from his old age applied to him in youth. The goal of those who make these "hero" movies is not to wow the audience with fight scenes, justice, and getting the girl. The goal is to show the noble perseverance of good- of doing the right thing even in the face of defeat. I was nearly beside myself emotionally when old Charles told young Charles to hold on and remember that it wasn't all about this vs this, but trying to be the influence of understanding. It was all very Optimus Prime at the end of one of the Transformers movies/the whole ideal to strive towards of Man of Steel. Look for those on one of the pages. It really was a good movie. I loved being reminded of the true purpose behind the characters we always wanted to be when we grew up.

What's next? Got season four and five of True Blood to keep me occupied while reading Pride and Prejudice. Also, working on getting an outdoor theater thing together with a pocket projector (hopefully get up to speed on Wes Anderson). Heard there was a Rene Clair tribute on TCM today so might head over there. Looking forward to Yves Saint Laurent coming out soon.

Working Girl (1988)

Been in the mood for some rom com lately, so last night I spent way too much money at Barnes and Noble renewing my membership and buying movies. I had never seen Working Girl before, but I love the eighties era hair, make up, shoulder pads, and computers. It begins with a surprisingly awesome opening:

It's a silly movie. Surely my time could have been put to better use watching Lawrence of Arabia or Doctor Zhivago, yes? Wrong. With a tagline that reads, "For anyone who's ever won. For anyone who's ever lost. And for anyone who's still in there trying," how could I not buy it!

Small synopsis: Tess McGill has not had a very illustrious education and is struggling to climb the corporate ladder  at the age of 30. However, men still believe a woman's place is raising a child or fetching them coffee. The only way to get ahead is the prestigious quality of your education or the glimpse of thigh-highs you give your next boss. So Tess gets a job working for a woman her own age (Sigourney Weaver). This is all fine until this lady steals some of Tess' ideas.

And what does Tess do? While her boss is out of work with broken leg, Tess pitches her ideas to the alpha dogs of the business. She takes control of her own future with her slightly too-soft (yet very sweet) voice. A lot of other stuff happens, but her guts pay off as she wins love and her own office- kicking Sigourney Weaver back to the bottom.  But seriously:

"No, I'm trying to make it better! I'm not gonna spend the rest of my life working my ass off and getting nowhere just because I followed rules that I had nothing to do with setting up, OK?"

Tess has a point. Who made the rules that defined how to be successful? What are they? Probably something like: 

1. Follow the rules.

2. Make good grades.

3. Join every club- it looks good on paper.

4. Follow the rules.

5. Do whatever is asked of you. 

6. Follow the rules. 

That's fine. But it says nothing about your character. You should never do what is asked of you- you should only act on the marvelous ideas you have for the future. You can work yourself into the ground trying to do whatever people think you should do. But can you really live with yourself at the end of the day? What if you lose yourself? Ayn Rand said it better in John Galt's speech from Atlas Shrugged: 

"Do not let your fire go out, spark by spark, in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish, in lonely frustration for the life you deserved... The world you desired can be won, it exists, it is real, it is possible, it's yours."

That's what it's all about. This movie is not epic. At first glance it really isn't very memorable. But look closely and you'll see a reflection of the determined-yet-struggling spirit within yourself. 

Also, young Harrison Ford (sans whip, sadly). 

Ultimately, the movie and this tribute allows me to forgive Griffith for the 1997 remake of Lolita. 

Tomorrow, Tomorrow, Tomorrow

When I was a girl, my paternal grandmother (Mema) used to sing, "The sun'll come out tomorrow; bet your bottom dollar that tomorrow there'll be sun." Well I spent a lot of time with old Mema and thought she was a nut. I was so exhausted by her attempts to cheer up a quiet and cynical child (me, of course). Harsh, but I was basically five at the time. Then I saw the movie Annie.

And it was different. I was gripped by the hopeful quality of this sweet little orphan's voice as she continued to hold a candle for her parents though it was futile. "Maybe far away or maybe real nearby." That maybe- that possibility was always there. She was told nobody wanted her. She was told her place was scrubbing floors. She was always caught after her many escapes. Still, she turned her little face towards the window and never gave up hope. For two girls like my sister and I, who struggled to find their place in the world, this spoke volumes. But Annie not only gave me a home, it gave me movies.

Movies? It's a musical about an orphan with a happily-ever-after story. Yes, but-

Suddenly this very simple act of attending a movie theater became an adventure. It became an opportunity for someone who led a less than glamorous life to experience a whole different world. I had always been addicted to books, but I began to see how much more movies could be. Annie's reaction to seeing a movie for the first time taught me to have that same excitement- to appreciate small luxuries. I may be finding the perfect seat in the theater or popping an old favorite of mine in the DVD player, but when the film opens I still jump excitedly in my seat. It gets obnoxious.

Unfortunately, it became somewhat of an obsession. Not only did I start to praise movies, I became very critical. I try to understand movies based on their own terms instead of my own, but it proves to be difficult at times. So I'll just try to be fair. Movies and movie experiences should be shared. Join me or don't, but this stuff matters.