The Great Beauty (La grande bellezza)

First Hit:  I didn’t see the humor or drama in this self-indulgent view of mindless obsessive behavior.

Art is a naked woman with a gauze headdress running into a rock wall. Yup, in some people’s eyes this might be avant-garde art, yet in the context of the Italian high society this film is sharing with the audience – it is just one poor choice after another.

Toni Servillo as Jep Gambardella whose goal it was to be the single most important partier in Italy is lame, meaningless and unimpressive. The faux sophistication is too easily seen through and “the shock” after his 65th birthday is simply life happening to him and he sees it for the first time through the haze of indulgence. None of the other actors or actresses left any impression worth mentioning. Umberto Contarello wrote this poorly conceived script from a worse story by eventual director Paolo Sorrentino.

Overall:  I was not impressed with any aspect of this film although many critics have high regard for it.

About Time

First Hit:  It was thoughtful, funny and makes a good point – pay attention to each moment because that is where life exists.

The men in Tim’s (Domhnall Gleeson) family have the ability to go back in time and redo/retry events. They, like Tim, get told by their fathers when they are 21 years old. Tim’s dad (Bill Nighy) tells him that the best way he can use this power is for something he loved.

Tim wants to be loved and to love. He meets Mary (Rachel McAdams) in a dark dinner house (this is actually both funny and interesting) and gets her phone number. Because he re-winds the night to help is uncle with his opening night play, he doesn’t get to keep the phone number and although he has the experience of meeting she doesn’t.

The whole film is about the choices he makes, some for himself and some for others and the resulting consequences. In the end he realizes it is about paying attention to each and every little thing. The actors, especially Nighy, are lively, interesting and funny.

Gleeson is very good as the thoughtful young man who wants to and finds love. McAdams is funny and delightful as Mary. Nighy is so wonderful to watch and steals every scene he’s in. Lynda Wilson (playing Kit Kat), Lindsay Duncan (playing Mum) and Richard Cordery (playing Uncle D) were all very good. Richard Curtis wrote a fun crisp script and directed this cast in the same way.

Overall:  This is a very fun film and worth the price of admission.

Last Vegas

First Hit:  I laughed off and on throughout this film – enjoyable.

It won’t win any Oscar tributes, nor will the Oscar winning actors get nominations for their roles in this film, and my guess is that this group of fine actors had a good time making this film.

Each of the actors Kevin Kline (playing the Florida retired Sam), Morgan Freeman (playing the, I just had a stroke Archie), Robert De Niro (playing the grieving Paddy) and Michael Douglas (playing the rich and I hate getting old Billy) were perfect for their roles.

After more than 60 years of friendship, these guys are in their 70s and the changes in their bodies and lives are more obvious. Billy wants to get the old gang together because he’s decided to get married for the first time (she’s 32). Although there has been a riff between Paddy and Billy, the gang gets together in Las Vegas to rediscover their friendship and have a good time.

For each guy there is something to resolve and this film finds a wonderful way for them to gain peace with themselves, their family, and/or their friends. The best part of this film is the way the actors were themselves (and their characters) with such ease.

Douglas is on target with beginning to process how time flies. De Niro is perfect as the guy who learns to let go, just a little. Kline is great as the guy who learns how to bring life and romance back into his life. Freeman is superb as the guy who wants to live his life on his terms, despite the warning sign of a recent stroke. Mary Steenburgen (as Diana) is sublime as the night club singing woman who helps Paddy and Billy resolve their disagreement. Dan Fogelman did an excellent job of combining today’s world and language with yesterday’s way of viewing life. Jon Turteltaub was very smart in letting these professionals enjoy their roles.

Overall:  Although its subject is light, this was a very enjoyable and entertaining film.

Thanks for Sharing

First Hit:  Scenes of this film are really good and reflective.

I can understand the lack of an audience for this film. People aren’t necessarily compelled to watch something that has such a stigma – yet it would be wise if people did.

Adam (Mark Ruffalo) is a recovering sex addict. Although he has 5 years of sobriety from sex, he’s still scared every day of what can happen if he acts out on his underlying desires. His sponsor, Mike (Tim Robbins), is encouraging him to consider dating and being open and honest in a full and engaged relationship.

Mike is an addict himself with multiple additions, or so we are led to believe and his steadfast guidance is honored in the weekly meetings. His wife Katie (Joely Richardson) has been through it all with him and she continues to be a supportive because she loves him.

To view the obsessiveness of this addition, the film uses Neil (Josh Gad) a doctor who rubs against people in the subway, tries to film up his bosses dress, watches porn films he’s made and on the internet. He is out of control and tries to BS his fellow AA meeting group about his sobriety.

The scenes in the meetings were good, and some were very good. The scenes of Neil falling to his obsessive behavior are tinged with Gad’s own humor, but also show to the lengths some go to, to not acknowledge their disease. Bringing Adam out and into the world of a sexual relationship is Phoebe (Gwyneth Paltrow). She has had a prior relationship with an addicted person (alcohol) and makes it clear she doesn’t want to be with someone who’s in a “program”.

When Adam honesty opens up this part of himself to Phoebe is a powerful part of this film. Then seeing Adam’s fall into past behavior was equally powerful. The film also shows how addictions affect family by sharing Mike’s son Danny (Patrick Fugit) own fight to sobriety although it is different than his father’s.

Ruffalo is really good and believable is presenting the constant vigilance he has to take and how easy it is to fall down again. Robbins is very good as the slightly self-righteous sponsor who has years and years of sobriety and his arrogant behavior leads him to being humble. Gad is great and willing to put obsessive behavior on film. Paltrow is beautiful, and carries her character in the ways many people share about addicted people. Fugit is good as the son who is attempting to make amends his own way. Pink as Dede, another addicted person, is wonderful and she brought a strong woman’s voice to the film. Stuart Blumberg and Matt Winston wrote a very good script and obviously did their homework. Blumberg’s direction was very good while some scenes were exceptionally strong.

Overall:  I really like this film because the closeness of addiction in me and my extended family’s life.

Don Jon

First Hit:  What a delightful, funny and well-acted film which explores a form of sex addiction.

Porn is one of the most important things to Jon (Joseph Gordon-Levitt). The often repeated essential things in his life are: his family, friends, body, car, his girls, and porn.

He likes to masturbate to internet porn. He likes it better than being with a woman because he loses himself in porn. His friends call him “Don” (like an Italian family head) because when he goes out to bars he always takes home an 8 or above (8 out of 10 – aka “dime”) girl.

When they’re in a bar, they stand around and rate women on a 1 – 10 scale then dare each other to move in. One evening he sees a “dime”. Barbara (Scarlett Johansson) is a knockout and Jon is blown away. He tries to hustle her home that night, but she refuses and says, I’m not ready yet.

Jon decides to take his time; a first for him, and woo her. He takes her to chick flicks, buys her dinner, and starts to take college classes because she wants him to. He meets her family and she his, so everyone is on board for a long term romance. All the while every day, multiple times each day, he gets off on porn. On the evening she decides to give it up to him, he gets up while she sleeps and goes into another room to view to get off on porn.

Barbara catches him and he tries to lie himself out of this dilemma. He promises her he won’t do it again. As their relationship grows it gets harder for him to hide his addiction. When she discovers through his computer’s internet history (love that he didn’t know that browser history is automatically kept) she ends the relationship.

One of the best scenes in the film is when his sister Monica (Brie Larson) tells him he was simply being used by Barbara – it’s her only line in the film.

Gordon-Levitt as actor, writer and director was outstanding. Although the film felt a little lost in the end, it was extremely well done and some scenes are absolutely amazing – how many hail marys and our fathers does one need to say to get salvation. Johansson was absolutely amazing. Her actions, voice, attitude were spot on powerful. I was enraptured by her character. Tony Danza as Jon Sr. was great. He captured the intense and limited world of his life. Glenne Headly as his mom Angela was very good. I loved how her life was based on when she would get a grandchild. Larson, and her one line, was fantastic.

Overall:  This was a very entertaining film and Gordon-Levitt shows himself as someone with creativity and the ability to make it work both in front of and behind the camera.