my cat is my therapist

Goon (2011)

Your enjoyment of ‘Goon’ will depend on whether or not you find obscenity and beating the shit out of people funny. For me, the answer is obviously ‘all of the above.’ But I was never into hockey, so I really wasn’t expecting to like this as much as I did. It’s filled with bloody noses, flying teeth, and funny one-liners: they’re so over the top and politically incorrect that you can’t help but laugh. It does seem like they’re trying too hard to get a cheap laugh sometimes, though.

3.5/5

Tyrannosaur (2011)

Paddy Considine’s directorial debut ‘Tyrannosaur’ is about an violent, alcoholic man (Peter Mullan) who meets a kind thrift store owner (Olivia Coleman). He expects her to become his guardian angel, but as their relationship progresses, he finds out that she has her own demons. It begins on a dark note, with the main character killing his dog, and doesn’t let up. The characters are complex and interesting, even though they’re not the most likeable. It can be hard to sit through at times, but it’s worth it.

4/5

Les Miserables (1998)

I was a little disappointed this wasn’t the musical version at first, but that didn’t last long. ‘Les Miserables’ is full of good performances, and though parts of it really feel condensed, it was still very touching.

4/5

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2003)

This is a beautiful looking movie with both great story and characters and some cool action scenes. I also really liked how it didn’t fall into the cookie-cutter ‘girl powah!’ storyline.

4/5

The Secret World of Arrietty (2012)

‘The Secret World of Arrietty’ is the new animated film from Studio Ghibli, based on the book ‘The Borrowers.’ It’s about a family of tiny people who live under another family’s house, and take little things to survive. But when the daughter, Arrietty, is discovered by a sickly boy named Shawn, an unlikely friendship begins, and Arrietty’s family is put in danger.

The way the animators bring this miniature world to life is amazing. Every frame is hand-drawn and teeming with life. Like Arrietty, you feel like you’re experiencing all the wonders of the ‘human bean’ world for the first time. 

While the story is simple, quiet, and thoughtful, it’s still very heartwarming: a refreshing change from most noisy, pop-culture infused family films. You can always tell these filmmakers have great respect for their art and their audience.

I watched the English dub (fuck anime snobs, seriously), and most of the voice performances are good. The cast includes Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, and Carol Burnett. I wasn’t a big fan of David Henrie’s performance as Shawn, though. I dunno, he just seemed too wide-eyed and whimsical for a teenage boy dealing with that kind of thing.

I think ‘Arrietty’ is an improvement over Studio Ghibli’s 2008 feature, ‘Ponyo’ (which I thought was good, but a bit muddled). Kids, adult animation fans, and anyone in the mood for a sweet, visually stunning family film will definitely love it.

4/5

Magnolia (1999)

I thought I was gonna hate this movie at first: the first hour was very noisy and hard to sit through. It’s a three hour film, and it goes a mile a minute. But as it went on, it grew on me. Though the performances were good and I was interested in some of their stories, I didn’t feel that attached to most of the characters. Paul Thomas Anderson’s direction is great, and I respect the film’s ambition. Interweaving stories about one day in the lives of different people isn’t a new idea, but the style and execution are very unique. 

3.5/5 

The Innkeepers (2012)

‘The Innkeepers’ is a horror film about two coworkers (played by Sara Paxton and Pat Healy) who decide to investigate some strange occurrences at their hotel. The dialog and other interactions between the two main characters were funny. Unlike a lot of other horror flicks, I actually liked them and cared about them. It’s also very competently directed by Ti West, and the way the interior of the hotel was shot was great. But ‘The Innkeepers’ suffers from having a lot of buildup, but not a lot of payoff. There are numerous little scenes throughout the film that seem like they’re leading to something, but most of them don’t. And don’t even get me started on the ending (or lack thereof). It’s still a fun little horror movie, but it could’ve been much better.

3/5 

The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover (1989)

This film is infamous for being an onslaught of debauchery from start to finish, and it’s very stylistic and gaudy. I enjoyed the dark comedy, the performances, and a few of the more morbid moments, but it didn’t really resonate with me beyond that. 

2.5/5