Some Movies I've seen Recently

I'm inching ever so closer to seeing most of the Oscar contenders along with what I think are some of the best movies I've seen this year. Here are some films I've seen in the theatre these past few weeks.

Frost/Nixon: A solid Hollywood entertainment with Michael Sheen and Frank Langella reprising their stage roles and giving two of the best performances of the year. Supporting work by Sam Rockwell and Oliver Platt as aids for Frost to help him prepare for the legendary interview also deserve recognition. My problem with the film lies in the glossy direction, I wanted it to be more grittier and biting, the whole film seemed too nice and I felt much of the impact was lost. However for the most part it remained entertaining. 3 stars out of 4

Slumdog Millionaire: A sweet fable of a boy growing up in the slums of Mumbai, falling in love with a girl and finding himself a contestant on India's "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire", and is then accused of cheating after he's one question away of winning a fortune. Danny Boyle inserts a very likable kinetic energy to the story that works in some places, but doesn't in others. I often wished things would've slowed down a bit more for us to understand the characters motivations some more, however this is a very likable movie with a nice finale at the end. 3 stars out of 4

The Wrestler: The best of the bunch I saw, Mickey Rourke's performance deserves all the praise it's been getting as he plunges into the life of a pro wrestler who's best years are behind him and he's trying to make amends for the mistakes he's done but can't help setting himself towards a destructive path. Marisa Tomei is also impressive as a stripper who's also growing older and can't decide whether or not to stand by the wrestler's side. Director Darren Aronofsky doesn't hold back in depicting the life of real wrestlers and the sacrifices they make, but it's also an impressive story of a man coping with the thought of spending the rest of his life alone. 4 stars out of 4

Revolutionary Road: As I was watching this film, I couldn't make up my mind whether or not I liked it. I don't think it was until Michael Shannon appeared for the first time as a mentally unstable man who is the only one who actually says what's on his mind. The film isn't bad in many ways, director Sam Mendes puts us into the world of 1950s suburbia quite nicely, and the arguments between Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio ring true many times, then there is Michael Shannon as I mentioned who only has a handful of scenes but he owns them each time he's on screen. Winslet and DiCaprio are impressive as well but I sometimes felt their characters might've benefited more from two unknown actors. All in all I'd say "Revolutionary Road" is a wonderful mess of a movie that seems to play better when it's trying to be a melodrama and not a satire. 3 stars out of 4

While it hasn't been a bad time at the movies I must say most of the best films I've seen this year are mostly ones I've viewed on DVD. I mostly don't discuss films I've seen on DVD but I want to make an exception this time, so tune in for a more in depth discussion of some hidden gems I've seen.