Lars and the Real Girl

First Hit: This oddly premised film is one of the better films I’ve seen all year and is probably a comedy only by premise not the story.

Ryan Gosling is an actor who is not afraid to play odd, different and difficult roles.

Earlier this year I saw him in "Half Nelson" as an addicted school teacher who teaches and is taught by his students. In this film Ryan (Lars) must be someone who is so shut down that he finds solace and companionship in a mannequin.

What is happening in this film is that Ryan’s character is working out how to trust being with another person, another woman. We learn that his mother dies during his childbirth and his father was a horrible dad.

His brother, who lives in the main house, is happily married and his wife is pregnant. She really wants Lars to engage with life more and is the first to support his coming out through Bianca (the mannequin). And although the relationship between Lars and Bianca is chaste the depth of feelings expressed by Lars are real.

Kelli Garner is also wonderful as Margo, the real girl, who wants to have a relationship with Lars and shows a real ability to stay on the edge of a very smart ditsy compassionate girl who knows what she wants.

Overall: This film is only a comedy by premise and really is a wonderful film about someone finding their way out of delusion and into the life of now.

Dan In Real Life

First Hit: This is a subtle and good comedy because the comedy does not come at you with an overt aim of making you laugh, it comes as a real story of letting go of the past and taking a chance on now.

The other films I’ve seen with Steve Carell as the main character, have not impressed me.

Not having a television excludes me from the group of people who like Steve’s work as much of it is on the small screen.

In this film we are introduced to a man who is raising his three daughters on his own and makes a living by writing an online advice column. He seems to fret about doing the “right thing” for each of his daughters and you have this sense he is always walking a very fine line between responsibility, sadness, and loneliness.

In this role he is excellent as you watch the interplay between him and his daughters. Each of his daughters’ plays a particular aspect of the struggles of growing up are good at making this known through their requests and their response to his answers.

Most of the story takes place at the family home during a holiday celebration. He has a large family and everyone seems to know most of the quirks of the others which assists in bringing out the story.

The story centers around a chance meeting Steve has with Juliette Binoche where he quite suddenly finds himself fully engaged in conversation and willing to poor out his life interspersed with inane comments.

During the conversation she receives a call and must leave their chance meeting. He heads back to his parents home with a light heart. However, he soon finds out this new woman in his life is also the new girlfriend of his brother.

Overall: This is a really good film and has lots of choice family moments that are naturally funny and poignant. It also gives people who normally see only Hollywood fare to see a great actress, Binoche, who normally does foreign and independent films.

The Darjeeling Limited

First Hit: This film has a few laughs but basically falls flat on a cold wet tea bag (Darjeeling that is).

All the king’s horses and all the king’s men couldn’t put this film together again.

Anyone who has been to India will note that the crowdedness of the city streets (the initial taxi ride) and railway stations are not represented here. In one scene when they are running to catch their train the background crowd is lined up with their backs to the building and looking at the camera and scene being shot.

Normally that train platform would have been full of people. It is too bad the story has them riding first class because doing so is partially the reason their “spiritual quest” is denied and the film fails. It might have been more comedic and interesting if they had to travel as most of the common people travel.

The story line about the mother leaving them falls flat as well.

I could not picture these guys to be brothers; especially Jason Schwartzman who co-wrote and had a producer credit and was one of the prime movers of the film.

Wes Anderson does create some wonderful visual colorful pictures but it does not make up for a weak script and poor acting. Lastly the thought that an Indian woman attendant would have “a quickie” with one of the brothers was preposterous and demeaning.

Overall: Don’t waste your time or money on this film there isn’t much of a story here.

King Of California

First Hit: I liked and enjoyed this film after its slow start.

Michael Douglas has taken on some interesting parts in his career ranging from a “Wall Street” hotshot to a man who reaches the end of his rope in “Falling Down”.

His part in this film is an addition to one of his more interesting acting endeavors. It took awhile for the film to get into gear or maybe it was me that struggled getting into gear with the film, regardless as the film unfolds the relationship between him and his daughter played by Evan Rachel Wood was really touching and tender.

This relationship develops in that slow meaningful way you like to see these things develop in a film. This is a story about admiration, trust, curiosity, and the failings of parents as the admiring daughter begins to see her father as he is.

The story begins as she picks up her father from a mental hospital and you see that she is the one keeping their life together. Douglas begins to weave a tale about buried gold doubloons hidden by an early California explorer/Father named “Garces”.

As he shares the tale he invites Wood to read the story, do some research, and help him find the buried treasure which happens to be under a Costco; the store with everything.

Overall: I ended up enjoying this film when I fell into its pace to connect with thoughts and feelings of the characters. The film left me in joy and a sense that human gifts to each other can be expressed in many different ways.

2 Days in Paris

First Hit: What a wonderful entertaining first effort film by Julie Delpy.

If you’ve never seen Before Sunrise or Before Sunset you’ve missed a very enjoyable look at a marvelous actress who grows on you the more you watch her.

Julie has been over 40 films and in each one she shows up and shines regardless of the role.

This is the first major film she has directed, wrote, co-produced and starred in. Like few others who attempt to do it all on a film, she succeeds fully. She knows how to direct herself and write funny dialog.

This is a fun film and her foil, Adam Goldberg, is very good at making the dialog come alive with a certain irreverence and seriousness.

Overall: I'm in line for Julie's next film as director or star.