Trivial Matters

Finally, I got to see this movie. I had to drive clear across town (in the snow as it turned out) to find a theater playing it. One would think that for all of the press it has been getting, and all of the talent involved (Ron Howard, Frank Langella, Kevin Bacon, Sam Rockwell, and Oliver Platt to name a few) that it would be getting many more screens in Portland.

But anyway…

The film opens with actual news footage about Watergate, leading into the resignation speech (I kinda hoped for a cameo by Ben Stein). The first half of the movie is the setup for the interviews. Frost is presented as a playboy push-over who was going to softball Nixon, all the while trying to sell it as the most important interview of all time.

I was a bit dissapointed that there was not much exposition on the Watergate scandal beyond what most people know. I was born during the Reagan administration, and only know what happened from history books. And you could tell from the movie that there was a popular hatred of Nixon, but it is never justified or explained fully.

Knowing that this was based on a play, I tried to picture each scene as if it were being on a stage. The only parts that were lost on me were the “interviews” with Frost’s research team and Nixon’s Chief of Staff that were scattered throughout the movie. (I thought of the show Life in that they are the same style of post-event interviews.) At first it seemed like they were interviewing the actual persons being portrayed, which I think would have been a better move, but I quickly recognized the actors.

As far as the acting goes, Rockwell was over-used and Platt was under-used. Langella and Michael Sheen both give great performances, but never at the same time. In fact, the whole movie was jumpy in the sense that only one actor at a time was able to shine. Perhaps it was intentional, but the idea of an “ensamble” cast doesn’t work if they can’t act together.

Also, too much focus was on Frost’s girlfriend. At times, I expected her to be a spy for Nixon or something, but in the end she was just someone in the background who got way too much screen time. (Maybe if they had said the two got married or something in the “afterward” text before the credits, their relationship might have actually meant something, but I guess she was a fictional creation of sorts.)

Altogether, it is a decent movie. I’ll have to see if I can find the original interviews to watch and compare. I didn’t know that Diane Sawyer was working for Nixon at the time, which was an interesting twist that they didn’t play up at all (at least I found it interesting). I wouldn’t be surprised if someone tries to do something similar with Dubya in the next few years.

Went out into the winter today. I didn’t want to drive on the ice so I walked down Cedar Hills to the Panera Bread for breakfast. Of course, the sidewalks were just as icy and slippery, but I did not fall. After breakfast, I ventured over to the auto parts store to see if they had chains for my Mom’s car. She called in sick to work because she didn’t want to drive, which is understandable. But, no chains at the store (or so I thought).

Decided to see a movie, and the only new release playing at the local cineplex was The Day The Earth Stood Still. I’d read the reviews and knew it was going to be bad going in, but I didn’t realize just how much they could screw it up. First off, someone tell me how Kathy Bates becomes the Secretary of Defense. I would have bought National Security Advisor no problem, but SECDEF?!?

The environmental message was entirely lost in the FX. Hell, the only reason I knew it was there was because I had read that it replaced the anti-nukes message of the original. Will Smith’s son is a horrible actor. I don’t hate the kid personally, but flashing puppy dog eyes is not acting, and his mood changes were too abrupt even for a hormonal pre-teen. Keanu was… well, Keanu. Can’t fault him for that. To be honest, the only performance I liked was the interogator’s.

After the movie, I walked back up the hill to the apartment and double-checked Mom’s tires. Turns out I had the wrong size, so I checked online and the auto parts store did have a set for her. So I ordered them through the site and went down to pick them up. Installing them took some time (and several adjustments), but now she’s ready to drive to work. Which is good because my AT orders came down today and I have to report to the Unit tomorrow, so she’s driving. (I guess I’ll have to get a set of chains for when I’m in Forest Grove after next weekend. God, I can’t wait to move back out. This was supposed to be temporary.)

I also got a call from TNT. They sent me more info on the races, including URLs for each race’s website. I checked them out and have a better idea of the race courses. More to come on that.

Of course, I saw this today… despite being broke. Caught a matinee show, which was still pretty packed, but not so much that I was squeezed between two fat guys. Was in time for the previews, thank goodness.

I say that because while I was hoping to see the new Watchmen trailer (which I had already seen online),  I was instead treated to a surprise.

A convertible is speeding down an empty highway. A cop on a bike appears in chase. The car is approaching a cliff, head-on. The driver steers to the left and rolls from the car, which drifts over the edge. The driver, a young kid (like 8 or 9), barely escapes the same fate, latching onto the ledge and pulling himself up. The bike, which we now see is actually hovering off the ground, stops and a robot cop dismounts. The cop asks the kid for his name…

(Now at this point I’m thinking that McG has seriously screwed with the Terminator franchise and the kid is about to say “John Connor.”)

…The kid responds with “James Tiberius (Fucking) Kirk!”

How cool is that? I read a description of this trailer a few weeks ago, but it didn’t click when I saw it on the screen. The scene is followed by a shot of the under-construction-Enterprise, some shots of Spock as a baby/kid, and then the usual action cuts that go with a movie like this. But that opening, man, that was just awesome.

But you don’t want to know about the trailers, do you? You want to know how the movie was, don’t you?

Well… it was good. Not as great as I had hoped (or hyped myself up for), but it lived up to the Bond name and was a fitting conclusion to the Casino Royale storyline. I had read that this was the shortest of the Bond movies, but it certainly didn’t feel short. I liked the idea of Bond’s “kill first, dodge questions later” approach in that it showed how flawed the double-0 training can be. Frankly, if you’re going to give someone a “licence to kill,” don’t be surprised when they keep using it (M, I’m talking to you).

I also liked that he doesn’t hop into bed with every woman he meets, just the ones that are in his way. (BTW, there may be spoilers in this post. Sorry.) I wonder if they’ll keep the streak going of killing every woman he sleeps with.

The movie does have some flaws, however. I don’t buy the whole secret organization thing. (Especially when one of their members goes around wearing a “Q” on his lapel.) If they were that secret and powerful, they could end Bond anytime they wanted to. Also, why would they set up a 00-agent with a licence to kill as a murderer.

Finally, Jeffery Wright was wasted as Felix Leiter. Even though he had more screen time than in the last pic, it was wasted playing assistant to a corrupt CIA assistant director. I know it’s a Bond move, not a Felix movie, but that doesn’t mean you have to make the guy look like a schmuck (even when he’s helping Bond).

Oh, and also, I was right about the theme song. There were some whispered conversations going on during the opening chase scene, but everyone shut up when the music started. It was a great return to the “naked sillouette” sequences, and did help set the tone for the rest of the movie.

With all of the hype over Quantum of Solace, there’s been little play (or mention) of the theme song. Jack White and Alicia Keys were called in to replace the downward-spiral that is Amy Winehouse, and managed to pull off a catchy tune.

The local alternative radio stationin Portland, which plays a Jack White song about once in three, instantly dismissed it because of Keys’s involvement. Now there’s a story on Time naming it one of the worst Bond themes of all time. I don’t buy that. I think once people get in the theater, hear the song, and watch the movie, it will click and it’ll start getting some airplay and well-deserved respect.

Is it the best Bond theme? No. To me, Garbage’s “The World Is Not Enough” is my favorite, with “Live and Let Die” in a close second. But I think the new one is growing on me.

(And Chris Cornell’s “You Know My Name” was decent too.)

Site: http://disney.go.com/disneypictures/up/

Teaser Trailer: http://www.apple.com/trailers/disney/up/

Pixar has got a new movie for this Spring. I have to admit, I chuckled at the teaser, but I’m having a hard time figuring out the plot. I have no doubt that there will be plenty of in-jokes for the adults (givent he age of the main character), but I can’t see a bunch of balloons carrying this movie (pun intended).

I figure there will be a full blown trailer sometime in March, so I’ll have to wait until then. Perhaps some of the “spies” at AICN will have something before then.