The Help (2011)

 
Aug. 20, 2011

71. The Help (2011)

Starring Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Bryce Dallas Howard, Octavia Spencer, and Jessica Chastain

Directed by Tate Taylor

Plot: “A look at what happens when a southern town's unspoken code of rules and behavior is shattered by three courageous women who strike up an unlikely friendship.” (from IMDb)

Yes, a new movie! The first film I’ve seen in theaters in quite awhile. I was going to wait and read the book before I saw this, but my sister was in town and wanted to go see it, so I did. This wasn't my favorite movie ever, but I definitely enjoyed watching it. I'm not sure what I think of it on a critical level.  You see, I saw on IMDb that a lot of people find this film to be racist. It didn't strike me as that way, but perhaps I just can't relate (?). I don’t think I will read the book, though. If you’ve seen this, what do you think? Is it a racist?

Of course, the '60s wardrobes, houses, cars, etc. are fabulously fun to see but I couldn't really enjoy them a whole lot because this kind of focused on the ugly part of the '60s, with racial prejudice and everything.

One of my favorite characters was Miss Celia (not pictured). I loved how giddy she was and that she really didn't care about skin color. I do think it was kind of mean of her to try to get back at Miss Hilly, though.

As for objectionable content, it is rated PG-13, mostly for language I assume (though there is also some violence, smoking, and—of course—racial prejudice). This bothers me because the swearing is so utterly unnecessary in the film that I have to wonder if they inserted it just for the ratings bump.

I love this picture—the glasses the typewriter, everything!

Viola Davis was just superb.

I really did like Emma Stone in this. I thought she did a great job; I just hope that this is the first in a series of better career choices (Easy A sounded awful).

Final verdict: Aside from the fact of some language issues and possible racism (still a little confused on that), I did enjoy this film! :)

The Young Victoria (2009)

 
Mar. 27, 2011

46. The Young Victoria (2009)

Starring Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson

Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée

Plot: "A dramatization of the turbulent first years of Queen Victoria's rule, and her enduring romance with Prince Albert." (from IMDb)

This was one of the best films I've seen in a long time. From the outset, the lively pace of the piece enticed me into the story. I found myself quite captivated by the visuals, music, emotions, and storytelling of the film. Often I watch a movie in the background, but this one garnered my full attention and kept me captivated throughout.

First of all, the casting was perfect. Blunt wonderfully conveyed the strong-willed yet vulnerable Victoria, and Friend was ideal as the kind gentleman who wins her heart.

Though some parts of the story seemed rushed, I rather liked the film's jaunty pace. I felt that in this case, as in poetry, superfluous words were unneeded to convey the heart of the story.

As for criticisms, I have few. ***SPOILER ALERT*** I do wonder why they included the false incident of Albert getting wounded, though. One would think such iconic royals had interesting enough lives without the aid of fictional embellishment. I also thought the gliding technique used at Victoria's first dance was a little jarring. But whatever my minor nit-pickings may be, none of these elements did anything to deter my wholehearted enjoyment of this film. It's one that I would love to watch over and over. Needless to say, I am hoping that unconfirmed rumors of a sequel are true!

 
This film won an Oscar for it’s costumes and its easy to see why—they are beautiful! I found this site that gives screen captures for each outfit. You may wish to check it out if you are an admirer of beautiful period clothes. I also found this other review when I was looking for photos. I thought the author did a great job of summarizing the beauty of this film.

 

If you can’t tell, I loved this film and highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys period dramas…or is just in the mood for a touching love story.

Pride and Prejudice (1995) – BBC Miniseries

 

Mar. 7, 8, 9, 2011 (<—this is 300 minutes, after all!)

42. Pride and Prejudice (1995)—REWATCH

Starring Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle, Susannah Harker, Julia Sawalha, Alison Steadman, Benjamin Whitrow, Crispin Bonham-Carter

Directed by Simon Langton

Plot: "Jane Austen's classic novel about the prejudice that occurred between the 19th century classes and the pride which would keep lovers apart." (from IMDb, and a rather poor summary, but I assume most know the gist of the plot)

*****THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*****

I always have a hard time pinning down my favorite P&P adaption. I like certain elements of all the ones I've seen—the 1940 one with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier, this version, and the 2005 film with Keira Knightley and Matthew McFadyen. I like this adaption because of the time the story has to develop and because it is usually regarded as the adaption most faithful to the original novel. But…

I'm glad I decided to rewatch this because I saw some things in a very different perspective. I guess there were mainly three things that jumped out at me. But before delving into those points, I feel like I should give some sort of warning to die-hard Austen fans. I'm afraid I might scandalize or offend you with what I am about to say…

First: I forgot just how stuck-up and sulky Darcy is. I know that he is always regarded as The Ideal Man, but I don't think I would ever want to be married to that type of person. He is certainly an interesting character and I enjoy the story, but I just think the whole Mr. Darcy thing is overrated. I understand that he is shy, awkward, willing to work on his faults, etc. but just imagine him on a bad day! I am happy to hear any arguments supporting the theory that he is Male Perfection Personified, though—so shoot away! (Personally, I can think of Austen men that I find much more agreeable. Just in this, I rather liked Col. Fitzwilliam. He seemed like a nice, handsome, steady, stable guy…without the glowering stares and mood swings.)

Second: I never really felt like Elizabeth loves Darcy (at least in this adaption) for who he is. Her attraction in this seems to begin when she discovers how rich he is, and she even admits this jokingly. Or is she joking?

Jane Bennet: No, seriously, Lizzy. When did you first know you were in love with Mr. Darcy?
Elizabeth Bennet: It came on so slowly I hardly know... but I believe I must date it from the time I first saw his wonderful grounds at Pemberley.

Third: The ending seemed to lack something. Despite the objections I listed above, none of these really hit me until near the end of the film. In fact, I greatly enjoyed most of this adaption. I found myself caught up in the tension between Elizabeth and Darcy, suppressing laughter at the funny parts, and enjoying watching the plot unfold even though I knew it well. But…the end. It felt like SUCH a let down. His second proposal seemed most ‘blah’. Her reaction was so subdued. And then the wedding. It just felt like it really lacked something. I still wasn't buying their attraction. I guess (don't shoot me for this) I like more how the ending was handle in the 2005 film--we can clearly see that they are in love with each other, they acknowledge their short-comings and false presumptions, and they live happily ever after.

Please don’t think I didn’t enjoy this at all, though. As I said, I still thought it was a great miniseries. I just noticed some things that I hadn’t before. But as to what I liked…

 
I loved how much is conveyed in all the looks.

Such beautiful penmanship! I wish I could write that nicely.

There were some lovely shots of the English countryside. The 2005 adaption also did a beautiful job of this.

 
This is one of my favorite scenes (how original, I know). I like it because of how awkward and nervous the usually up-tight Darcy is. This is evidenced in the fact that he requests after the well-being of her family twice in a very brief conversation. His character really begins to develop. We see that he is shy and tongue-tied and maybe just not as proud as Elizabeth thinks…

The STARE…there’s a lot of that in this movie.

Also quite a lot of this ^^^ (letter reading)

Short Review: Mansfield Park (2007)

Feb. 8, 2011

33. Mansfield Park (2007)

Starring Billie Piper, Jemma Redgrave, Maggie O’Neill, Blake Ritson

Directed by Iain B. MacDonald
Based on the novel by Jane Austen

Plot: Sent at a young age to live with her aunt and uncle, Fanny has always been somewhat of an outcast. Now, at age 18, she is finally coming into her own. Yet when out-of-town visitors show up, the one relationship she holds dearest is almost taken away from her. [bad summary, I know, but I couldn’t find one so I had to write my own—which I’m not good at!]

This is the first adaption I’ve seen of this novel, and I can’t say that I was much impressed. Billie Piper never really seems comfortable in the leading role, and the script wasn’t particularly good. I do find it odd that she is in love with her first cousin, but maybe that’s more accepted in Britain than it is in the U.S.? The ending also felt a little insincere. This was a nice effort, but for whatever reason, it just never came together.

Short Review: Persuasion (2007)

Jan. 16, 2011

16. Persuasion (2007)
TV movie

Starring Sally Hawkins, Alice Krige, Rubert Penry-Jones

Directed by Adrian Shergold
Based on the novel by Jane Austen

Plot: “Royal Navy captain Wentworth was haughtily turned down eight years ago as suitor of pompous baronet Sir Walter Elliot’s daughter Anne, despite true love. Now he visits their former seaside country estate…” (from IMDb)

I wanted to like this movie. I really did. But there were just so many things that contributed to it being a very poor and uneven adaption. Granted, I have not read the book (someday I really should!), but I can identify what did not work here as a movie. The main problem seemed to be a bad script and/or bad direction. The characters and their motivations often felt muddled, flat or unconvincing. I was not a fan of the casting of the two main leads either, and I didn’t feel like they had sufficient chemistry together. ***SPOILERS AHEAD*** There are also a lot of things I didn’t understand: why is she dating her cousin? How does she know how to relocate collarbones? Why does she do so much running? Why is that first kiss so painfully awkward? Why did they not make more of an effort to give the leading lady attractive hair and clothes? Why does she ‘break the fourth wall’ and stare creepily at the camera? Etc… This just felt like such a half-hearted attempt.

Short Review: Miss Austen Regrets (2008)

Jan. 16, 2011

16. Miss Austen Regrets (2008)
TV movie

Starring Samuel Roukin, Olivia Williams, Greta Scacchi, Imogen Poots, Hugh Bonneville

Directed by Jeremy Lovering

Plot: “In the later years of her life, as she’s approaching the age of forty, the novelist Jane Austen helps her niece find a husband.” (from IMDb)

I don’t know much about Jane Austen’s life, but I didn’t like the character in this film that was supposed to be her. She came across to me as an embittered, shrewish, immature, money-obsessed old maid. I accept that this film is basically a work of fiction, but I just didn’t understand her character. The film did have an interesting ‘feel’ to it and I think we can all relate to some of the uncertainties, regrets, etc. that the characters discuss. Yet it just couldn’t make up for my lack of investment in what meager story there was. This movie is relatively short and a good enough diversion, but it just never really seemed to get anywhere.

Short Review: Sense & Sensibility (2008)

Jan. 10, 2011

9. Sense & Sensibility (2008)
TV mini-series

Starring Hattie Morahan, Charity Wakefield, David Morrissey, Janet McTeer, Dan Stevens, Dominic Cooper, Lucy Boynton

Directed by John Alexander
Screenplay by Andrew Davies
Based on the novel by Jane Austen

Plot: This is an Austen movie, so I feel like spelling out the plot is kind of beside the point. Those familiar with the genre know the blend of relationships, misconceptions, personal revelations and humor that her work usually includes.

Sidenote:This obviously isn’t an old movie, but I am going to try and review all of the movies I see—not just the oldies.

This isn’t my favorite Austen, but I liked it a little better than the 1995 adaption. It is a mini-series and I admit to finding the pace a bit languorous at times. (But maybe that’s just because I don’t have the best attention span.) I liked the character of Elinor, and Hattie Morahan who played her, but I wasn’t very invested in any of the male characters. As someone who has not read the book, I was also confused by some of the plot points and I didn’t always like how the story was presented on screen. Perhaps if I knew the novel I could fill in the cracks more. All in all, this isn’t a movie that I really loved. It wasn’t awful. Just kind of ‘blah’. It has fairly high IMDb ratings, though, so apparently lots of other people really liked it.