My Week with Marilyn is based on diaries and the book The Prince, The Showgirl and Me by Colin Clark, directed by Simon Curtis and screenplay by Adrian Hodges. The cast includes Michelle Williams (Marilyn Monroe), Kenneth Branagh (Sir Laurence Olivier), Eddie Redmayne (Colin Clark), Emma Watson (Lucy), Dame Judi Dench (Dame Sybil Thorndike), Dougray Scott (Arthur Miller), Julia Ormond (Vivien Leigh), Zoë Wanamaker (Paula Strasberg), and Dominic Cooper (Milton Greene).
Kenneth Branagh plays Sir Laurence Olivier who is unquestionably one of the greatest actors of the 20th century. Sir Olivier’s goal in this film is to work with and seduce Marilyn during the production of The Sleeping Prince (the name of the actual production was The Prince and the Showgirl.) His obstacles are his age, his training background, and the object of his attention, Marilyn herself. Sir Olivier thinks that Marilyn is one of the most beautiful, and talented, woman in the world. Yet he discovers she doesn’t have the training that he has and she’s a “method” actor. He dislikes the “method” and realizes that Marilyn in person is not the Marilyn that is on the screen. His grand illusion of her is crushed and he obviously abandons any thoughts of her at all beyond making the film. He sees himself as a teacher to the young Marilyn and figures out that he can’t change who she is. Sir Olivier is greatly influenced by his classical theatre training; he believes all actors should be trained. He changes through this film by realizing he can’t change Marilyn and that he can’t seduce her. (She had taken a shine to Colin Clark instead.) His frustrations with Marilyn fuel a lot of his actions. He feels that making the movie with Marilyn will make him feel young again and he realizes that he is wrong. Eddie Redmayne plays Colin Clark, the man who told his story. His goal in life is to work in film. He wants to do anything to get a foot in the door. So, he goes for an interview and keeps returning even after he is told there is no work. They appreciate his tenacity and hire him as a third assistant director. Colin faces his father’s disapproval. But his mother is sure that the studio will love him and make him a director within the week. His love for the cinema comes from spending every Thursday night in the cinema finding refuge from his family of over achievers. His father was historian Kenneth Clark and his brother a former Conservative MP and minister. He views himself as the disappointment in the family. He tries to not be like his family. Colin has the need to fit somewhere and he wants it to be in the film industry. He strives to be successful (like the rest of his family but in his own medium.) Colin grows just in the short time that he has with Marilyn. He experiences love and heart break all at her hands yet he remains her friend. He also becomes a friend of Sir Olivier just by being the overachiever he was raised to be. There isn’t really a message in this film. It tells the story of one week that Colin Clark had with a Hollywood icon that no one would otherwise know about. Most of us have grown up knowing the name Marilyn Monroe and who she was as an actress but this movie gives insight into Norma Jean Baker, the real person behind Marilyn Monroe. It communicates how the world saw this blond bombshell and how the intimate moments of Marilyn and Colin really show her insecurities, worries and needs. She really needed to be loved for who she was off screen and that was not how people loved her. They loved the created creature.
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Who absolutely LOVED the 100th episode of "Castle"? I did! The shouts out to Jimmy Stewart and Alfred Hitchcock (all though it was through storyline...)
Rear Window directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring James Stewart (L.B. “Jeff” Jefferies), Grace Kelly (Lisa Fremont), Wendell Corey (Det. Doyle), Raymond Burr (Lars Thorwald), and Thelma Ritter (Stella) and it was released in 1954. A photographer with a broken leg has weeks to watch his neighbors from the window in his apartment. There is a heat wave going on and all the windows are open so he has a birds’ eye view into the private lives of his neighbors. He observes what he thinks is a murder. Jefferies (Stewart) calls on a war buddy, now a detective, to investigate. Jeff insists what he’s been observing is a crime and includes his girlfriend Lisa (Kelly). Lisa gives good insight into the activities of the missing wife. But Doyle (Corey) proves that the wife indeed left. One of the neighbors has a dog that ends up dead and it seems that this is really the only crime that has been committed. Alfred Hitchcock was like a lot of other directors in Hollywood at that time and had actors he preferred to work with and James Stewart was one of them having appeared in Rope (1948), The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956), as well as Vertigo (1958). Hitchcock also worked with Grace Kelly in two other films Dial M for Murder (1954) and To Catch a Thief (1955). One thing that stands out is the often uncredited cameos that Hitchcock makes in his films. In Rear Window he’s in one shot in the songwriter’s apartment winding a clock. In this film he shoots just from Jeff’s apartment giving the viewer the only point of view that is needed. If there had been any other shots incorporated into the film it wouldn’t have been quite as affective. If the viewer had actually been inside the Thorwald’s apartment there would have been no mystery or suspense in the disappearance of Mrs. Thorwald. Hitchcock also seemed to prefer adapting novels or short stories, Psycho, for example is based on a novel by Robert Bloch and Rear Window, is based on a short story by Cornell Woolrich. One of the themes that often is present in Hitchcock films, when mistaken identity isn’t involved, is the psychopathic killer. The viewer sees this in this film as well as one of Hitchcock’s other famous films, Psycho. In Rear Window, the killer’s identity is revealed early in the plot but it is never confirmed until the end when he is finally caught through the team work of Stella (Ritter), Lisa and Jeff. In Psycho, it remains unclear who the murderer is through most of the film. Is it Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins) or was it “Mother” whom we never really know if she is alive or dead although three different actors voiced Norma Bates (Virginia Gregg, Paul Jasmin, Jeanette Nolan). In Rear Window, the viewer can see, in Jeff’s point of view, there is some kind of strife in the relationship of Mr. and Mrs. Thorwald. Jeff watches with interest. It rains and that’s when Jeff notices that something is really wrong. The viewer also knows something is up because of the strange behavior of Lars Thorwald. Alfred Hitchcock’s career as director started in 1922 with an unfinished film, Number 13. After forty-nine previous films Hitchcock became known for his macabre and suspense filled movies. Rear Window is his fiftieth film, including shorts. His sense of suspense is well developed by now and he is playing with camera angles and story point of view. All of his other movies take place in multiple locations but Rear Window is shot entirely from Jeff’s apartment. The viewer never sees more than the interior of the small one room except for the small glimpse of the bathroom when Lisa opens the door to go in and out. Never are the other lives entered into, not even when Lisa and Stella exit the apartment to investigate the flower bed. Hitchcock has successfully contained everything in the movie in that little room. His view on law and punishment is shown in this film when Jeff feels that the crime must be uncovered and will do anything in his power to make certain of it, as Hitchcock’s father called the police on him for a small, childish crime when he was little. This most certainly put in Hitchcock’s mind a firm sense of right and wrong. His sense of the macabre may have been his own version of rebellion against his Catholic upbringing. This MTV Films picture is directed by Kimberly Peirce and is co-written by Mark Richard and Kimberly Peirce based on conversations with Peirce’s little brother who joined the military after 9/11. Starring Ryan Phillippe (Brandon King), Channing Tatum (Steve Shriver), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Tommy Burgess), Victor Rasuk (Rico Rodriguez), Abbie Cornish (Michelle), Linda Emond (Ida King), Ciarán Hinds (Roy King), Timothy Olyphant (LT COL Boot Miller), Quay Terry (Al ‘Preacher’ Colson), Rob Brown (Isaac ‘Eyeball’ Butler), Josef Sommer (Senator Orton Worrell) and Matthew Scott Wilcox (Harvey).
In this film, director/writer Peirce and writer Richard, explore the phenomenon that swept through many military units from 2003-2009. That phenomenon was “stop-loss”. Brandon King (Phillippe) is a Staff Sergeant in the 110th Infantry and is on his last tour in Iraq with his best friend Sergeant Steve Shriver (Tatum). Both Non-Commissioned Officers are due to ETS (Expired Term of Service) upon return from their tour. But as they are turning in their gear and expecting separation orders they are instead handed transfer orders. Brandon wants to fight the stop-loss and goes AWOL (Absent Without Leave) to try to contact Senator Orton Worrell (Sommer). I loved how this film started out with the documentary style aspect all from the Soldier’s point of view. They were “in charge” of the camera and it delved into the real life of a deployed Solider. It also looked at the trouble that some Soldiers had readjusting to civilian life with the character of Tommy. If anyone wants to know what a majority of Soldiers felt like that got the “stop-loss” order than this is the movie. The fact that it was based on interviews with Soldiers gives it weight. It wasn’t written by someone unaffected by the Global War on Terror (GWOT), it was written by someone that had a vested interest in telling the story. Stop-Loss is a realist film. How can it not be? It did in fact happen to thousands of MOS critical Soldiers. The movie was filmed on location in Texas and in Morocco to give it the feel of being in Iraq. As much as they wanted to film in Iraq for obvious reasons they were unable to go on location there. It fits in to the Drama category, with some moments of funny, and handles heavy subject matter. Tommy’s suicide and the journey of SSG King in his search for answers, which he eventually finds in the sense of duty he feels to his troops. The dialogue is flowing and natural. This movie is as relevant today as it was when it was filmed. Continued engagement in prolonged conflicts stretches thin our forces, and the need to recycle them, ends with “stop-loss”. The whole filming style Peirce used was to give it documentary feel and put the viewer in the Soldier’s shoes, to feel the frustration at being done with your contract and then being told “no, you have to stay.” The special effects were appropriate to the realistic combat scenes. There is no question that this movie is full of realism. Hats off to Kimberly Peirce and Mark Richard for producing a fine film that feels real enough to this Soldier. Released in 2003, Big Fish was somewhat of a departure for Tim Burton. A movie that didn’t star Johnny Depp and took a huge leap from his usual quirky films like Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Sleepy Hollow, and Ed Wood just to name a few. Big Fish stars Ewan McGregor (young Ed Bloom), Albert Finney (elder Ed Bloom), Billy Crudup (Will Bloom), Jessica Lange (elder Sandra Bloom), Alison Lohman (young Sandra Bloom), Helena Bonham Carter (Jenny & the witch), Robert Guilluame (elder Dr. Bennett), Marion Cotillard (Josephine Bloom), Matthew McGrory (Karl the Giant), Missi Pyle (Mildred), Loudon Wainwright III (Beaman), Ada Tai (Ping), Arlene Tai (Jing) and last but not least the great character actor Steve Buscemi (Norther Winslow). This film was adapted from the Daniel Wallace novel by John August. Will Bloom has heard his father’s stories all his life. Huge outrageous tall tales that, while he was young seemed great and wonderful, became irritating as Will got older. So, Will marries and moves overseas to France with his wife (she’s French) where they live and work. One day, Will gets a phone call from his mom that his father is dying. He travels home to reconcile with his father and finally get to the bottom of those tall tales. The theme of this film is the estrangement of the father and the son; which seems to mirror the relationship Burton has with his own father. He reflects in an article that he had the desire to leave the house at a very early age. This is also similar to the character of Will Bloom. Burton frequently depicts strained father/son relationships (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Edward Scissorhands). Burton’s penchant for misunderstood characters comes through in this film with the blending of fact and fiction in Ed Bloom’s tales, the “Siamese” twins Ping and Jing and Karl the Giant come to mind. We, however, learn the truth behind these colorful characters in the end. But, Ed Bloom himself is one of those misunderstood characters. Ed is seen through the various stages of his life through his stories. Burton also uses his usual musical collaboration with Danny Elfman for the soundtrack. Helena Bonham Carter plays not one character but three in this film, another one of Burton’s usual suspects as well as a very talented actress. Burton uses flashback well when Ed Bloom is telling the story of his life. He also uses camera angle to the film’s advantage. One instance is the first time we hear about Karl the Giant. The shot from inside the barn wall looking out piques the interest to want to know what made the hole, then the cut to the front as they stand in dismay over a large human shaped hole is the answer. It made the audience say “What the …?” Then “Oh my.” This film fits into Burton’s personal life very well, strained relationship with his father and the desire to leave the house. This is probably the closest storyline to his life that the world will ever see. He may pick films with this theme on purpose but it is highly unlikely since he claims to be a very private person. It has been debated that this film may have begun some sort of commercialization of Tim Burton. He went on to Disney films like Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderland, Frankenweenie, and the mixed reviews cult film Dark Shadows. But yet, he still has a knack for the odd characters like Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. I was lucky enough to go see The Lego Movie this past Sunday with the youth group from my church. Why did I say lucky enough? Because we were supposed to be at a double header soccer game in the northwest part of the state. Thanks to Mother Nature we were "weathered out."
I went with a mission. The mission? To scope out the credits for a name I personally know. But once the movie started the mission went to the back of my mind. (Yes, I saw the name at the end.) It was cute. Not what I expected at all because it blended live action with animation so, I was confused when the name which-shall-not-be-dropped said she worked with the humans. The storyline pushed the agenda of following instructions, perfection, and everything had to go as planned. The hero, Emmet, was a follower that didn't have an original thought of his own. He, like a lot of residents of Brickville, had an instruction book and they were told what was pop music. Enter our heroine Wildstyle. She brings free thought with her and the knowledge of being a Master Builder. Master Builders are all original thinkers and are slowly being captured and held by Lord Business (that's kind of a funny stab at adults that have lost what it means to be a kid and play because that's all they think about is business and getting ahead, but that's my opinion). The action was well executed and is good entertainment for kids of all ages! Sorry it's such a short review! Kathy Lee & Hoda are on so it's time for me to get out the door for class! |
AuthorCollege graduate, Army vet, single mom, Husky mom, Movie lover, writer Archives
August 2022
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