FROST/NIXON

Rated:
Good but not great
**

Director:
Ron Howard

Writer:
Peter Morgan
from his
play

Ron Howard is a good director. He's not great, but he's good. He can point a camera the right way and get what he needs. Unfortunately, that makes most of his films flat and very by-the-book. I don't think every director should break the film making rules, but even Spielberg can blow your mind with an amazing shot. Howard's not about that. He just wants to tell the story as simplistically as possible, which is why this movie fell short of my expectations.

I was born three years after the Frost interview of Nixon was taped and aired, so I had no idea that it existed until the film was released. The film begins the day that Nixon resigns office after the Watergate scandal (if you don't know what that is, go look it up, because I won't go into it here) and David Frost, world-renowned TV personality, gets the brilliant idea to have a sit-down chat with Nixon and find out all there is to know. We never really understand why Frost, a Jay Leno-type of guy, would want to interview Nixon beyond an ego-boost.

First they have to convince Nixon, who is fielding other offers, to allow Frost to do the interview, and after $600,000 paycheck Nixon realizes that only Frost can do the interview justice. Frost's pre-production team consisting of Oliver Platt and Sam Rockwell go into research mode, digging up every piece of dirt in Nixon's past. Frost, however, is more interested in the limelight and everyone is afraid he will soft-pedal the former President, which is exactly what happens for the first three of the four planned interviews. Nixon's team have coached him how to act and he's playing Frost like a dime-store ukelele.

Frost feels like a fool and realizes that Nixon is stringing him along, so he decides to spent the remaining days before the final interview on Watergate to bone up on everything Nixon. On the day of the interview, Frost takes Tricky Dick to task and we finally see the real, hurting Nixon shine through the wrinkled, stoic facade. He isn't a doddering old fool, he's just a lonely old man man who feels he has made some mistakes and knows he has to live with it for the rest of his life. The world finally gets to hear Nixon speak and Frost reaps the rewards by sprining back into the spotlight that so many denied him.

You can't help but feel sorry for Nixon, but then you think about all the terrible decisions and double-dealing that went on during his administration and that pity fades. The film, a very standard, by-the-numbers affair, will also fade, but from our memories. The acting is wonderful, but Howard is not up to the task to make the film really pop. This film will leave you disappointed if you expect something great, but if you expect a Lifetime movie, then you'll have an okay two hours. At the end, I found myself in a curious position, I had no feelings for the film. Usually, after I finish a film I know how I'm going to review it. But with this one I had a tough time coming up with any thoughts. It's a weird thing when a film is so "meh" that I have zero response to it. That goes to show you how much of a blank this film felt to me.

VERDICT:

This film could have been a masterpiece in the hands of Oliver Stone, or even Martin Scorsese, but in Ron Howard's hands its basically a movie-of-the-week with some good actors. It's worth a watch, but don't expect to be floored, because there's nothing very earth-shattering here. Expect this one to be forgotten by next year. Anyone remember "THE MISSING" or "ED TV"? 'Nuff said.

THE WRESTLER

Rated:
Depressing but worthwhile
****

Director:
Darren Aronofsky

Writer:
Robert D. Siegel

Second on the list of my 2008 awards season recap is the interesting but depressing as hell bio-pic of a wrestler, directed rather simply by Darren "Pi" Aronofsky. This isn't really a bio-pic of any particular wrestler, but I call it a bio-pic because this underdog story and its downbeat ending can fit pretty much anyone who's tried and failed and tried again. Before I go any further, I promise not to ruin the ending. You can read on and expect only the highlights. However, whatever you as the reader infer is your fault.

Randy "The Ram" Robinson (played excellently by Golden Globe winner Mickey Rourke) is an aging wrestler who still throws down a couple of matches on the weekend while making ends meet at the local grocery store. He has a daughter, but they are severely estranged. His only form of human contact is a stripper named Cassidy (played very well by Marisa Tomei, who should be given credit for flaunting her assets without restraint). She likes him, but is hestitant of forming a relationship with a "customer".

After a brutal, knock-down, drag-out, bloody match, our hero suffers a massive heart attack due to the amount of performance enhancing drugs he pumps into his system and the wear and tear his body takes on a regular basis. The doctor advises him to quit wrestling and now Ram is faced with a new life, one he can't quite handle. But this new change allows him to build a relationship with Cassidy and forces him to find his daughter and try his best to repair the burned bridges.

The film is simple...almost too simple, to be great. The acting is wonderful, for course, but the story in the end is so unsatisfying that I hasten to call the film a masterpiece. I liked it, though, don't get me wrong, its just so very true to life that it becomes painful to watch. I think the film is definitely worth watching, however. My only complaint is that the story ultimately goes nowhere and the last ten minutes pretty much make the entire film pointless. We end up where we began, and yes Mickey does a phenomenal job of becoming a real, hurting individual (the story was probably too close to his real life), but in the end the journey was shorter and much more bitter than we as the audience hoped it would be.

VERDICT:

The almost opposite of a "ROCKY" movie, this film is a solid, powerful motion picture, but ultimately Aronofsky and company leave you feeling cold and alone. This isn't the most action-packed film, either, so don't watch this one tired.

SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE

RATED: Extraordinarily Satisfying
*****
Director:

Danny Boyle
Writer:
Simon Beaufoy
from a
Vikas Swarup novel

This is without a doubt the most joyous film of 2008. Director Danny Boyle tries his hand at essentially a Bollywood film which is equal parts coming-of-age epic, love story, crime thriller, feel-good comedy, and gripping drama. The best part about it is how well Boyle keep it all together and never allows the film to collapse in on itself.

Using probably the most ingenious storytelling device I have seen in a while, Boyle's film begins with our hero Jamal Malik (played very well by Dev Patel) being tortured by the local police. He has just won 10 million Rupees on India's 'WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?' and they think he's cheated, so they decide to beat and electricute the fact out of him. He tells them plainly that he "knew the answers". They let him down and then sit through his episode of Millionaire so he can explain just how he knew the answers.

Malik begins to tell us his life story and how the answers to the questions came from the tumultous events in his life. We see Malik and his brother Salim grow up as orphans and beggers and rise to become mini-entreprenuers. We meet Latika, Malik's first and only true love. We runs into gangsters and Indian movie stars (which, by the way, was one of the best scenes in the whole film...you'll know it when you see it). I'll leave the rest of the story for you to enjoy, and believe me it is quite a wonderful adventure. I found myself crying one moment, then laughing, then gasping from shock.

The film, exisiting in three different time frames, is so well-crafted and plotted that it just might be the most perfect film of the year. The last fifteen minutes are definitely pitch perfect and flawless. Nothing is wasted. Boyle's visual flair is on display, infusing the film with an eccstatic energy. Almost every shot is canted, which may speak to how the brave and lost trio of heros, our Three Musketeers, see the crazy, turbulent world around them. I would wager to say that this is Boyle's masterpiece, but I'll bet he's got a few more in him.

VERDICT:
This complicated and beautiful film is a definite must see by all. Laid out flawlessly and plotted like the crime of the century, this exuberant piece of art is more an experience than just a mere movie. There is a power to this film which will bewitch you, and have you dancing in the streets Bollywood-style by the end.