Our Idiot Brother
Perfect Sub-Par Sunday flick. The movie is just pleasant. It’s the film version of a baseball player content to simply get on base. Paul Rudd carries the movie with his likable persona of a guy who’s “idiotically” trusting, like a dog that takes you at face value. The supporting cast are all good, but this is the kind of movie which sinks or swims on the charm of it’s protagonist. You know exactly how it will end up, but it’s ok because sometimes you just want to end a movie with a smile. 7/10
Contagion
Soderbergh is a phenom. He’s not one to swing for the fences with each at-bat (Hello, Scorcese), instead he’s just game for interesting stories, and telling them in a style which seems to say “I just want to get out of the way so you can enjoy story time for 90 minutes”. The only odd man out was an unfinished strand with Marion Cotillard’s character. Other than that, it’s a fine film, and a scarily accurate depiction of how vulnerable we are to getting cut off at the knees with a sneeze. This isn't a story of "could this happen?" This is a story of "when this happens, this is how it will go down." 8/10
Side Effects
Another solid film in a similar stylistic strain as Contagion. It feels like the kind of film that is more at home in a hitchcockian post-WWII studio system. Mysterious setup, well paced follow-through, confirms Channing Tatums eyes are too close together, nice left-turn kink in the story, and ends with a satisfying payoff. 8/10
Enough Said
This is the kind of romantic comedy I can get behind. When it’s funny, it doesn’t seem like it’s trying, because it’s not
that funny. It’s endearing without pulling too hard on the “awwww” strings. It’s also the kind of role James Gandolfini should have played more often. He was so much more than Tony Sopranos, or any other of his many hard-ass characters. Julia Louise-Dreyfus nails the cute and self-aware kind of awkward single mom, and is matched perfectly with the supporting cast (kudos to Ben Falcone and Tavi Gevinson). Little things in the movie work just so well. The dynamic between the characters hits several marks (hurt, anger, funny, quirky) without needing to take them to
“Set course for epic. Engage!”. For example, the dinner scene where Julia’s ex-husband is introduced has all the elements that other movies/tv shows have in similar scenes, but treats it with more delicacy. There’s the friction between her and the ex. Cattiness with the new wife, teenage angst, friends participating in a communal argument, but none of it is drummed up too much. Its played like it actually happens in real life, where discord is felt, but not on any BS operatic level. The ending was also perfect. 8/10