Shattered Glass, 2003

Another Blockbuster rental [yuck, I know, but the library that I went to sucked big time, so when I spotted Blockbuster in that suburban stripmall, it was like a beautiful water fountain mirage in the desert].

I've been wanting to see Shattered Glass since it came out. I was in a journalism class and just cultivating my passion for the medium [oh okay]. I was reintroduced to the idea, I suppose, freshman year of college in a media class, where we talked about journalism scandals.

Stephen Glass was a young journalist who wrote mainly for The New Republic. [I was also interested in this movie because I have a friend who currently works at the magazine]. His stories were seemingly almost too good to be true- turns out they were.

The film chronicles the deception by Glass and skims the service of his motives. It shows him in the editorial meetings, charming his co-workers with his colorful story pitches. It's sort of confusing, though, because it shows realizations of the stories as he tells them. I don't mean to spoil it for you, but his stories are NOT REAL. But they show them happening. It's confusing, mostly because we don't really learn Glass's motives for the whole thing. Then again, Glass apparently hasn't been willing to explain why he's done either, even five years later.

Hayden Christensen portrays Glass. I was hesitant because of the way my peers lament the actor, claiming that he ruined Star Wars. But I think he did a good job of playing a man that was so in need of peer-approval and success. Glass is busy working at TNR but applies to and attends law school at Georgetown. He constantly asks his boss and co-workers if they are "mad" at him. Though Glass doesn't explain his full intentions after the fact, you can understand how something like this happens.

Also I think this is the first film of modern cool-girl fashion icon Chloe Sevigny. I like her. Also Peter Saarsgard is pretty cool, though I didn't get the praise from the back of the DVD case [loads of awards], but then again I liked him more then I did in Garden State.

Overall a worthwhile film, especially if you're interested in a glimpse inside of the magazine world, or interested in people who ... like to make things up?

[Photo from http://thecia.com.au/reviews/s/images/shattered-glass-poster-0.jpg]

BATMAN - Batman Begins, 2005

Again - those big-action Hollywood superhero films rarely catch my eye. I didn't even know that this film had come out until I started paying more attention.

This glossy, full-of-attitude and darkness Batman franchise is extremely stylish, and I like the way we're taught to really think about Bruce Wayne as a human, and the implications of his crime-fighting. That line of thinking is really interesting, and an asset to the film. 

That said, I really didn't like Batman Begins - not as a film on its own and especially not after having seen The Dark Knight. I thought that there was far too much focus on his strange Martial Arts fight training, and that plotline was weird - plus Liam Neeson looked like a catfish. There wasn't enough focus on Bruce Wayne's and Rachael's adult relationship, and also not enough focus on the public reaction to his superhero persona. I thought the crime plan was weird and not engaging. The shining beacon of light was of course Cillian Murphy.

[Photo from http://v4.valkiria.net/skin/film/pic/misc_img/b_batman_begins.jpg]

The Dreamers, 2003

I'll admit: I've been wanting to see this movie for ages but have been scared. Can I handle the blatant sexuality? The incestuous themes? As of late, I've been slightly obsessed with the portrayal of incest in film [we seek it out and look for the creepiest forms- this doesn't make me strange, does it?]. I found it in Blockbuster and finally decided that I was ready for it.

Verdict? I loved it. For real. The nudity? Only slightly shocking. I did love that it was almost an equal playing field, though. It really bugs me when bare female breasts are basically a mainstay and that almost all those "important" films that I've been schooling myself in feature them. Naked dudes? Not so much. So I am relieved [really?] that I can count both Michael Pitt and Louis Garrel in the "dudes I've seen nude" list that I keep in the back of my mind.

Right, right the movie. It's about these youngsters who get through their difficult lives by being fabulous in Paris and watching a lot of movies. Let's be serious- I can relate because I really mostly only want to watch movies, and I wish that I was doing so in Paris. Done and done.

The incest wasn't as extreme as I was expecting, which is nice, honestly. Though I love the awkward screen incest, it's not exactly comfortable. The cinematography was extremely dreamy [heh] and it was a story I could get down with. Go see it and DON'T BE SCARED.

[image from http://www.trimir.net/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2006/03/C7544-04.jpg]

Wristcutters: A Love Story, 2006

I had heard about this movie for a while and it didn't really do much for me, but I saw it while I was in Ballbuster the other day and I felt compelled to grab it and take it home. I'm extremely glad that I did. Honestly, never deny the appeal of PATRICK FUGIT. I don't know what it is about him, but I fucking love it.

Anyway the film is set in this weird perjury that suicide victims are sent to- where things suck just a little bit more. It's extremely dark and has a light take on suicide, but one that is ultimately entertaining and NOT offensive [and oh I am easily offended.]

The movie honestly had me laughing out loud [lolin' really], mostly because of the antics of the Russian Eugene [played by Shea Whigham] as well as a surprising appearance by Will Arnet. Also in the film is Tom Waits, which was awesome, needless to say.

Oh these movie reviews are kinda hard. Oh well, I'm just saying I think the cinematography was great- I haven't wanted to escape to the desert of the US so badly since Badlands. It's really a sweet movie, score one more for the reasons not to kill yourself. Go see it and pray with me that Patrick Fugit is not mormon and is figuring out the most romantic way to propose to me.

[photo from http://paddyk.files.wordpress.com/2006/11/wristcutters.JPG]