Sadly, I’ve never been to the iconic musical of “Les Miserables,” nor have I ever seen any of the previous adaptations of the Victor Hugo novel. I’ve also never read the novel. In actuality the most I’ve ever seen or known about “Les Miserables” is through an episode of “Animaniacs” where a condensed version of the musical was adapted through animated cats and dogs. When you’re through laughing at me, I like to think that not being knowledgeable about the material gives me somewhat of a different perspective. I’ve seen fans of the musical bash the film for missing the point, and vice versa. As for my thoughts on Tom Hooper’s 2012 adaptation, director Tom Hooper’s adaptation of Victor Hugo’s novel is an often breathtaking and compelling bit of epic musical that kept me considerably compelled and entertained from the moment it began.
Tag Archives: Drama
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
I don’t subscribe to the Hollywood notion that all you need to cure a crippling illness that affects the lives of your loved ones is a good girlfriend or boyfriend. In actuality, it takes almost a decade or two to cure a crippling mental illness. In that regard, “Silver Linings Playbook” fails. But as a film that seeks to be a unique and unusual romance comedy about two people that are anything but normal, director David O. Russell’s dramedy is pure excellence, and one that’s teeming with talent from minute one. “Silver Linings Playbook” doesn’t seem to rely on a strict formula per se, and that’s why it’s such an oddity in the realm of romance dramedies. Sure, in the end it’s about two people falling in love, but O. Russell spends time on focusing on their inadequacies and their malfunctions that make it impossible for the pair to function in reality, and then draw them closer and closer as the narrative unfolds.
Argo (2012) (Blu-Ray/DVD + Ultraviolet Copy)
Director Ben Affleck has compiled a wonderful and small list of films that bring substance, relevance, and real depth of cinema to the table. Once a man on the verge of fading in to obscurity, Affleck has now really re-invented himself as a man who has something to contribute to the world of cinema that doesn’t involve a smile and a cleft flash. Ben Affleck has revealed himself to be an understated and often under appreciated cinematic artist, who can often explore the worlds he chooses with great complexity and restraint. “Gone Baby Gone” remains his truly unnoticed masterpiece, but Affleck has managed to completely topple the last film, with thrillers and dramas that provide audiences with something unique and bold, while exploring themes of redemption, salvation, and hatred.
Let's Make a Movie (2012)
In order for “Let’s Make a Movie” to be half as good as it is, it really had to cast the right performer for the character of Cassie Thompson, and director Elana A. Mudgan accomplishes that task with Hallie York. Granted, “Let’s Make a Movie” is a really good and entertaining dramedy about the obstacles of filmmaking, but Hallie York really is the heart and soul of the film. On surface level, York doesn’t seem like a polished actress, but York really manages to carry the film with her portrayal of the troubled and conflicted young Cassie, who is struggling to find a direction in her life. Badgered by her parents to find something useful to do with her life, Cassie quits her job to work on an indie film that she is convinced will grant her success as a film director.
Love Stinks: Eight Demented Movie Romances
I can’t stomach too many romance movies these days, and I’ve always hated how romance is slipped into almost anything to garner some form of padding for the plot. Sometimes the love between two people is sweet, and many times it’s worthy of a groan and an eye roll. So, I thought of my favorite romances, and as expected, the list is slim, but hot damn, these movies are still great.
Ten Movie Characters We Want to Marry
Every movie geek, be they a man or woman, gay or lesbian, child or adult, have their own list or choices of movie characters they’ve laid eyes upon that they would love to marry, or have a relationship with. Often times these characters are simply fictional, but it’s possible there are people like them out there, somewhere. If we look hard enough. In either case, like every movie geek we have our list of ten movie characters we’d love to marry, and in the occasion of Valentine’s Day, we explore ten characters from the movies we’d propose to, and love every second with.
Do you have ten movie character you’d marry in a heartbeat? Let us know!
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Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012)
Though I never actually had the opportunity to read Seth Grahame-Smith’s original novel, director Timur Bekmambetov’s treatment of the revisionist novel is one of the more interesting horror movies I’ve ever seen. Not only does the film skirt the edges of camp, but it accomplishes the wonderful sense of surrealism and whimsy that Bekmambetov’s “Night Watch” films held so proudly. “Vampire Hunter” carries with it a lot of prospects for future installments, and it’s a very clever and often exciting bit of action horror that delivers on exactly what its title promises. There is Abraham Lincoln, and he does indeed stalk and hunt vampires for a great portion of the film.