About a little under a year ago, a filmmaker named Russell Emanuel sent over a film called “Girl with Gun”, about a single girl who has to balance her single life, career, and job as a hit man all at the same time. I loved that movie and it was a little under twenty minutes long. That film, an independent film, was fun, light, and breezy and managed to grasp its concept with enough entertaining novelty, that it felt too damn short. With “Mr. and Mrs. Smith”, I didn’t get that feeling. And I wanted to enjoy it, I really, really did. But I couldn’t. And why? Well, mostly because “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” takes itself much too seriously. One thing I can’t begrudge “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” for is its excellent direction.
Tag Archives: Romance
Mysterious Skin (2004)
The most frightening tales of the world, regardless of genre, be it horror, or drama, is always childhood trauma and abuse. Childhood trauma stories are always the most universally disturbing such as “A Tale of Two Sisters,” “Radio Flyer,” or “Mystic River,” because they always reach down and connect with us, no matter what occurs to the characters. Stories told through the child’s point of view always manage to bring the audience closer and makes us feel much more capable of relating even if the situation before us isn’t one that’s ever happened to us.
Yes (2005)
“Maybe there isn’t a design”, the cleaner examines to her audience, but then maybe there is. Maybe there’s a god and this is all a large plan, but maybe there isn’t and this all just random, then what of our existence and how we can leaves traces of ourselves long after we’ve died? “It doesn’t end when we’ve died”, the cleaner declares. Shirley Henderson gives a fascinating performance as “the cleaner” an entity who hovers around everyone in their household and cleans and wipes up after them and could very well be a ghost because she’s just a watcher.
Everwood Series Finale: Foreverwood
It’s been four years, four years on the WB. When “Smallville” premiered, I remember seeing the previews for “Everwood” and thought, “What the hell? I’ll give it a shot.” I never really thought it would become a ritual every week. “Everwood”, a casualty of the upcoming merge of the WB and UPN, is proof positive that television executives have no clue what quality programming is. After a long hiatus, and many time slot changes, the executives decided “It’s ratings were too low” (explain the logic behind that) and cut it down from the fall’s schedule. Which is not to say “Everwood” wasn’t sliding. “Everwood” was an excellent show, but became much too bogged down in melodrama and began lacking the spirit and small town quirkiness the first three seasons had.
The Key (2006)
Director Todd Kaufman’s short film named “The Key” is a film that I really couldn’t help but flip over. In only eighteen minutes it manages to speak sounds and waves of romance, and life more than any other film can attempt, and Kaufman really knows his characters. “The Key” is a beautiful short elegy about breaking out from your shell and being forced to confront the outside world you fear so heavily. In this case, it’s a girl named Miriam.
Roll Bounce (2005)
Hey, I won’t lie, I admit I wrote off “Roll Bounce” since the first trailer, and I didn’t even consider it would be a remotely watchable film, only because it looked like a complete replica of “Drumline”. But, when I began watching this, I realized I’d written it off unfairly. “Roll Bounce” is an admittedly cheesy, but utterly entertaining film that takes place in the fleeting period of disco, and roller disco. For those of you who have no idea what either of these things are you’re an idiot, but in simpler terms, roller disco was the fad you see on screen, and it was huge. “Roll Bounce” captures the essence of this fad with sheer charisma, while serving the kitsch and fantasy value of “Grease” and I had a lot of fun. Lee’s films is a lot like “You Got Served” except watchable, with a brain in its head, and actually exciting dance sequences about a young roller skater from the suburbs who goes to the roller rink with his friends every weekend.
Zombie Honeymoon (2004)
A few months ago, I saw a film called “Boy Eats Girl”, about a young man who dies and comes back as a zombie. The people who love him are willing to ignore his ravenous potentially murderous behavior because they just are that committed to him. “Zombie Honeymoon” is basically along those same lines. Except, in spite of its evident camp it’s much more in the vein of a tragedy, and it works. Can you love someone who is uncontrollably murderous? Can you love someone beyond circumstances that are not in your control? Do you fight the tide, or welcome it with open arms? “Zombie Honeymoon” in spite of its ludicrous title is actually much more classy and straight-faced than its moniker would dictate to audiences; which would also attribute to the lack of interest from many I’ve come across.