I saw just 8 movies in October, with all but one a new movie for me. Numbering picks up from last month, and movies I had not seen previously are marked with an *.
128. An Education (2008) – British schoolgirl Jenny (Carey Mulligan) is not your average student. The 16-17 year old plays the cello, excels in Latin, speaks French and plans to study at Oxford. But first she meets mysterious and wealthy David (Peter Saarsgard), who innocently picks her up and not-so-innocently proceeds to expose her to art, music and a faster crowd than her schoolmates. Is he as charming as he seems, even winning over her stern and disapproving parents? An interesting story that takes place near London in the swinging 1960s, “An Education” shows that life has many lessons and not all education takes place in school. 4 cans.
129. Ides of March* (2011) – Politics is a dirty business, as this political drama so clearly points out. Populated by a bevy of alpha males, the Democratic presidential primary in Ohio pits Pa. Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney, who also co-wrote the script and directed) against an opponent willing to court Republicans and independents and make deals the Governor refuses to make. His media adviser Stephen Meyer (Ryan Gosling) feels like his horse is sure to win the race. However, when Meyer is approached by the campaign manager (Paul Giammatti) for the opponent, he’s too flattered to turn down an inappropriate meeting. The plot is less about the battle between the candidates and more about the war of conscience vs. ambition, of values vs. pragmatism. The intriguing story is well played by Gosling, Giammatti and Philip Seymour Hoffman as the campaign chair who values loyalty above all else. Clooney has more of a supporting role as an attractive candidate whose values seem impeccable. I detest politics, but I liked this movie. 4 cans.
130. The Jerk* (1979) – Somehow, for all these years I managed to miss this early Steve Martin comedy, directed by Carl Reiner. Martin is the poor white son of a poor black family who sets out to seek his fortune. A good-natured simpleton, he is enthusiastic and appreciative of any opportunity he receives. I cannot imagine anyone other than Steve Martin playing this role in a movie of such inspired lunacy. He may be a jerk, but he is an endearing one. 4 cans.
131. Light in the Piazza* (1962) – Yvette Mimieux is luminous as Clara, an innocent young woman traveling in Florence with her devoted mother (Olivia DeHaviland) when she meets a handsome young Italian man (George Hamilton) and falls madly in love. Sounds like this story is headed for a happy ending, until you learn that there is something just not quite right about young Clara. Can she grow into the young woman of her mother’s dreams and live happily ever after or will her limited mental capacity become apparent to her would-be suitor? Should her mother protect her and stop the budding romance or allow her to blossom as best she can? This was a sweet movie and showed a side of Olivia DeHaviland that reminded me a bit of her role as Melanie in “Gone With the Wind.” The most amazing part of the movie was seeing a virtually tanless George Hamilton, who brims with enthusiasm and charm as he courts Mimieux. She plays her part with gusto and without guile. 3 cans.
132. Prayer for a Perfect Season* (2011) – There is no more bitter rivalry in sports than the one between New Jersey’s catholic high schools, St. Anthony’s of Jersey City and St. Patrick’s of Elizabeth. Located just miles apart, the two schools face each other on the basketball court each year to determine the best team in the state, or, last year, as shown in this HBO documentary, in the country. St. Pat’s, coached by Kevin Boyle, plays a national schedule but still has to compete in the county and the state tournaments. This film takes a close look at Boyle and his stars, focusing primarily on Kentucky-bound senior Michael Gilchrist. This is high school sports at its most intense, with Boyle presiding over a bunch of boys turning into men, while his chief rival, the legendary St. Anthony’s coach, Bob Hurley, stands in the way of his perfect season. This film whetted my appetite for the upcoming basketball season with a compelling story and some pretty slick moves on the court. 4 cans.
133. Footloose* (2011) – Though I missed the swagger of Kevin Bacon in this remake of his classic ‘80s performance as Ren McCormack, big-city kid in a small town, I really enjoyed this version. The tradeoff is that the new Ren, Kenny Wormald, can actually dance, as can Julianne Hough, the “Dancing With the Stars” alum and replacement for Lori Singer in the role of the rebellious preacher’s kid. Dennis Quaid didn’t fit the role of the father as well as John Lithgow in the original, and the new Willard in this version (Miles Teller) is a much superior dancer to Chris Penn from the original, but the sequence of Ren teaching him how to dance is still fun to watch. The story is the same, centered around a tragedy that causes a small town in the south to ban loud music and dancing, which only makes the kids want to dance even more. The details have been tweaked a bit and updated for today’s audience, which means giant boomboxes have been replaced by iPods. The music is still fun and the dancing joyful and exuberant. The only downside was voiced by my friend Dee, who said, “Too much drama, not enough dancing.” That hasn’t changed from the original, but we all would have loved a little more action on the dance floor. My only observation about both versions of this movie is that for a town where kids aren’t allowed to dance, they sure have a lot of great dancers! If you missed the original, go see this one anyway. 4 cans.
134. Emma* (1996) – Gwyneth Paltrow stars in the title role of Jane Austen’s 19th century novel about a young society woman determined to match up all those in her social circle. This is a story of social mores, miscommunication between potential couples and how to survive a boring life by paring off your friends. Paltrow – so very young and thin here – plays the part with grace and humor. Jeremy Northam co-stars as her good friend Mr. Knightly. The cast is uniformly good – but, if I fall asleep not once but FOUR TIMES while watching a movie, it’s safe to say it didn’t really hold my interest as intended. 3 cans and a long nap.
135. Hoffa* (1992) – Jack Nicholson, devoid of his trademark killer smile, portrays tough guy Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa in this biopic tracing the rise and fall of the union leader. Hoffa led his union with determination and bravado, building the Detroit local one member at a time on his march to the top. He defied his enemies, including several explosive face-offs with Attorney General Bobby Kennedy and the Justice Department on his way to an eventual jail term. I am always amazed by the magic way Hollywood turns actors into look-a-likes of the people they portray, and Nicholson here resembles Hoffa in the way I remember him before his 1975 disappearance. Nicholson chews the scenery as the fiery leader in a movie directed by his co-star Danny DeVito. Both men deliver the goods throughout the movie. 3½ cans.
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