Whoa, man! I have not reviewed a movie in a looooong time but I watched "Our Idiot Brother" this morning and it was such a gem that I had to write about it.
This was one of those movies that comes out and then you never hear anything about it so you don't go see it. I think I was also in Seattle at the time it came out and since movies tickets are like, $11 there, that probably contributed to me not seeing this movie at the theater. Well, I'm glad that I spotted it at the library and snatched it up because I loved it!
Paul Rudd was an absolute delight in this film, I'd even go as far as saying he was sunshine. I don't think this movie would have worked without him in the title role of Ned (the idiot brother). His character is just so sincere, optimistic and honest that you can't help but love him. I've had a mad crush on him since "Clueless" but this might be my favorite Paul Rudd performance. His character reminded me so much of Jeff Bridge's the Dude (my may be my all-time favorite fictional character) and that instantly made me have an affection for Ned.
I also liked that this film had an ensemble cast. Ned's neurotic sisters were the perfect contrast to his idealism. I didn't know that Rashida Jones was even in this film and she was killer in her role as Natalie's (Zooey Deschanel) girlfriend. Adam Scott also popped in the film and was adorable, as usual.
If you don't know anything about the story I'll give an extremely brief summary. Ned is an organic farmer who tries to do a brother a solid by selling him some weed, unfortunately this brother happens to be a uniformed policeman. After getting out of jail early (for being voted the most pleasant prisoner 4 months in a row) Ned finds he has nowhere to go since his girlfriend who he lived with on her farm has a new boyfriend and has to stay with his sisters. He inability to lie wreaks havoc in their "comfortable" lives and they're all forced to house him at some point. I won't give anymore away but I will say that Ned's optimism is contagious and eventually rubs off on everyone around him.
So, yeah, SEE THIS MOVIE! (I'm already ready to watch it again!)
I grant this movie four pugs.
Okay, so I know I've only seen like, 3 movies since the beginning of the New Year but this is the best movie I've seen in 2013! For rizzles! I saw the trailer a few months ago and even the trailer looked liked something I could really dig (they even used a Florence + the Machine song in the trailer--one of my favorite bands ever). I didn't know the two lead actors but the rest of the cast was killer (Emma Thompson? Yes! Jeremy Irons? Yes! Viola Davis? Yes! Emmy Rossum? Yes!).
Now I know a lot of people might be apprehensive to see this film since it's sadly being referred to as "the next Twilight" but honestly, I didn't see any parallels to Twilight in this film. Yes, it is a love story between an immortal and a human and yes, their families are against their pairing but that's the only thing the two stories have in common. I will say right now that I did enjoy the Twilight series, it is a guilty pleasure of mine but I also can admit without any hesitation that the story is ridiculous and the movies are kind of a joke. That was not the case with "Beautiful Creatures". This film was very well made; the special effects weren't corny and the performances were top notch.
I was really impressed with Alden Ehrenreich's performance as Ethan Wate, the male lead in the film. Ehrenreich was a pretty much unknown actor and not conventionally handsome so I wasn't expecting to be so taken with him. He was unbelievably charming and genuine. I normally loathe a Southern accent but his accent only added to his character's appeal. Thirty seconds into the film and I was already invested in this character; that rarely happens to me! The story takes place in a small Southern town where no one ever leaves. Ethan Wate longs to leave this town and dreams of going to college "anywhere 1,000 miles from here". The story begins with him having a reoccurring dream about a beautiful black-haired girl who he's never met. The girl he's been dreaming about turns out to be a new student who's recently transferred to his school, Lena Duchannes. He's instantly enamored with her but she initially resists him because she knows that a caster (a witch) can never love a mortal. However, she can't keep him away and eventually she gives in and the two fall crazy in love. I won't give away any more of the story but their love story was really touching. Being the hopeless romantic that I am, I couldn't help but think throughout this film, "I wish somebody loved me like that." :(
Le sigh...
Anyway, this is a movie that I'd highly recommend. I think you'll also be surprised by how good a film it is. I'm even looking forward to buying it on dvd already and that's saying something! I therefore bestow onto "Beautiful Creatures" four pugs!
Having only seen a handful of silent films in my time, I was apprehensive when I first heard about this film. However, after watching the trailer my curiosity was peeked enough to shell out $7 to see it. I had to see it solo though, since all of my friends were too ADD to sit through a silent film but I think it actually was for the best because then I could give the film my full attention.
I must say that I absolutely ADORED this film. I hadn't seen such a tender and touching movie in a long time. The story was pretty simple but the performances and the musical score were enchanting. After a while I didn't even notice (or care) that there wasn't any spoken dialogue. I was amazed that the actors could communicate so much emotion with their expressions and also how much the music added to the emotional impact of those expressions.
Berenice Bejo, who plays Peppy Miller, stole my little heart. She is simply adorable and her performance was magical. And Jean Dujardin gave the performance of a lifetime as George Valentine; he looks like he's from a different time, it's nutzo! I never cry full on tears whilst in the theatre (I will admit that I bawl my eyes out in the privacy of my own home) but I got pretty misty many times during this film. It was just...beautiful--and I don't use that word lightly. After the movie ended I felt lovely and happy all over but when I was walking out of the theatre I listened in to other people's reactions to the film...
They all hated it! Everyone kept saying, "I kept waiting and waiting for the sound to come back." and I wanted to shake them all and shout in their faces, "It was a SILENT film! Why would you be waiting for fucking sound?!" And what made me even more irate was the fact that all of these people were fucking OLD! They probably were alive when all movies were silent and now they can't even sit through one GD silent film? Philistines!
Anyway, Netflix recently put "The Artist" on their instant streaming so I told my parents they should watch it. They were watching some awful movie at the time and I got tired of waiting so I went to watch it in my room. It was just as good the second time but eventually my parents started watching it too. They were about 15 minutes behind me (I could hear the music because my dad is nearly deaf and has to watch tv extremely loud) and I couldn't believe it but my own parents TALKED THROUGH THE WHOLE MOVIE! How can you watch and appreciate a silent movie (or any movie for that matter) when you talk through the whole thing? I was appalled. My own parents were too ADD to watch this beautiful film. Come to think of it, my parents and I never like any of the same films. It's gotten to the point where they go out of their way to NOT watch a movie simply because I recommended it but then somebody my dad works with will suggest the same movie and THEY'LL WATCH IT!! Grrrrrr...
Well, in conclusion, I loved this movie and am amazed that such a film could be made today. It 100% deserved all of the awards and accolades it received and if you don't agree, then turn it off and go back to watching "The Hangover 2".
I deem "The Artist" the very elusive FIVE PUGS!
