And Again...

Monday Morning Quarterback, Part II, on Box Office Prophets:

http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/index.cfm?columnID=11482

And One More Thing

Friday Night Lights being on the air for 2 more 13-episode seasons is so fucking cool. That is all.

Monsters vs. Aliens, and I Don't Give a Darn

Monday Morning Quarterback on Box Office Prophets, discussing Pixar vs. DreamWorks (Pixar wins!), among other things:

http://www.boxofficeprophets.com/column/index.cfm?indexID=57

One of Those Rare Moments...

...so rare that it sounds like it's from a cheesy romantic comedy. Today was the first day (fingers crossed that it remains the ONLY day) that one of my parents asked me, seriously, if I was in prison. The answer is obviously no, but the idea that my mother, admitting that I'd find it funny when she asked, would actually take the time out to wonder if the phone call from the "Inmate Phone" at my parents' house was from ME....kind of scary.

When was the last time one of your family members wondered wrongly that you were in prison?

Duplicity

Copyright 2009, Universal Pictures

Tony Gilroy really loves ending his movies with long, long takes, huh? His latest, a caper dramedy called Duplicity, is certainly a much lighter affair than 2007's Michael Clayton, which is not nearly as great a movie as the Oscar folks thought. Still, the last shot is memorable here because it...well, Gilroy doesn't cut away for a split second. That style coupled with some actors who appeared in Michael Clayton prove that Gilroy does love certain things in his movies and won't hesitate to repeat himself.

Duplicity doesn't really repeat anything from Michael Clayton, but it's hard to ignore one parallel with the scripts, which are both heavy on the flashbacks, the former more than the latter. Starring Clive Owen and Julia Roberts as spies in lust or maybe love, Duplicity deals with the double- and triple-crossings Owen's Ray and Roberts' Claire commit while trying to scam two of the biggest pharmaceutical companies in the world for their own gain. As with any good spy movie, there are plenty of twists, surprises, and the like, and I can easily say that I wasn't expecting the final reveal (though I was certainly suspicious).

Even the best caper films are usually light and frothy in tone, and this film's not any different. Like the other greats, Duplicity is fun to watch and was obviously fun to shoot. Owen and Roberts have far more chemistry here than in their other pairing, 2004's Closer, though the subject matter in the two films is wildly different. The supporting cast, from the big names like Paul Giamatti and Tom Wilkinson (as the rival heads of those pharmaceutical companies) to the character actors like Denis O'Hare and Rick Worthy (once a Cylon!), doesn't flinch and are uniformly excellent.

It's hard to criticize much of Duplicity, though it's a testament to the characters and the lead actors that I very much wanted the two spies to get away with their scam as they'd originally planned. Hopefully, I won't have ruined the film for anyone who's yet to see it, but know this much: the plan hatched by Ray and Claire isn't as easy to implement as they'd hoped. Aside from whatever minor disappointment I have with the ending, there's little fault in the film, which is stylishly shot by Robert Elswit, has some snappy music courtesy of James Newton Howard, and even has one truly suspenseful sequence. Though Gilroy's not using any of the Jason Bourne-style action he's been responsible for previously, I was on the edge of my seat during that sequence (yes, literally).

Owen and Roberts aren't the most perfect match (Roberts did feel a tad off in some of her line readings), but Duplicity is a fun little caper, worth a good watch on a weekend matinee, at the very least.

I Love You, Man

Copyright 2009, DreamWorks Pictures

This one's a week late, which you shouldn't take as a sign that I didn't like the new "bromantic" comedy (and I hate that word, even if it keeps getting thrown around this movie and other things in pop culture thesee days) known as I Love You, Man. I laughed quite a bit at the film, which stars Paul Rudd and Jason Segel, among many other familiar faces. It's not a life-changing film, it's not an instantly classic film like Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy or The 40-Year Old Virgin, but it's very funny stuff. Compared with Rudd's last comedy, Role Models, it falters a bit, as I laughed more at the Rudd-Seann William Scott teaming, but in terms of heart and emotion, this one works out more.

The plot's relatively threadbare: Rudd plays a really nice guy who realizes, as he's preparing for his wedding to Zooey (Rashida Jones, much more charming here than she ever was on The Office), that he has no real guy friends to serve as his best man or be in his wedding party. Rudd searches for some friends, finds Jason Segel's goofy slacker, they have misadventures, and become best buddies. As with most comedies these days, the story is whether there are enough laughs or not.

There are plenty of laughs here, even though I wish one of the best gags in the movie, featuring Rudd, Jon Favreau, and some beer-chugging, hadn't been spoiled as an early red-band clip online. Whatever problems I have with this film really involve the lack of character development. Now, I know the jokes are the most important part of a movie like this, but we spend so much time finding out just how un-manly Rudd's main character is (and, admittedly, Rudd is brilliant playing the awkward nice guy) and so little time figuring out Segel. He's an investor who appears to live in a one-room shack, does no work, walks his dog, and plays video games. Sydney, his character, has enough money to spend on billboards promoting Rudd's real estate work, but he gets that money from Rudd. Who is this guy? I kept wondering that, but director/co-writer John Hamburg (as mentioned in many other reviews, Judd Apatow has no official ties with this movie, as much as it may surprise you) doesn't reveal anything important about the guy. Yes, we find out Sydney loves Rush, older women, and littering, but...I don't know, I feel like Hamburg didn't flesh out the character enough.

Overall, this is a solid entry in the Apatow-style of modern comedy, featuring strong performances from Rudd and Segel, but a bit of weakness surrounding the actual story. Movies like The 40-Year Old Virgin are classic not just for their comedy, but also for their characters. Andy Stitzer is a memorable comic character. Sydney and Peter, while very funny, are not.

Oh, separate note: I'm writing this review as I watch Stargate for the first time--the movie, not one of the TV series. No review for that one, however, as you should be able to surmise how interested I am in the film if I'm writing on the blog.

Battlestar Galactica: Seasons 3 and 4

Copyright 2009, Sci Fi Channel

Though I've mentioned it before, I'm going to take back something I said: I did not make a mistake waiting on Battlestar Galactica. For those unaware of this, I watched the three-hour miniseries from 2003 two years ago with my wife. Our consensus at the time was that the miniseries was pretty damn boring. Obviously, I've changed my tune (though I'd say the miniseries is hard to get through), but why am I saying it's not a mistake? Going through the entire series, all 73 episodes, is far more satisfying for me, far more breathless, than just waiting each week, and suffering the lengthy hiatuses (hiatusi?) between seasons and half-seasons. Even more, I'm able to finish up with the series finale only three days after it airs, thus missing most of the big spoilers about "Daybreak," the grand finish.

Oh, sure, I should have stuck with the show after the miniseries, but I've caught up now, so that's all there is to it. Either way, the last two seasons. Normally, I'd do a review for each season, but I figured I should just stick everything I've got to say into one post. Before going into season 3, I'd seen the overall view was a mild pan, compared to the craziness and intensity that was season 2. It's hard for me to bad-mouth season 3, though, as it featured the slam-bang five-episode opening arc, with the human characters leaving New Caprica and continuing the fight against the Cylon enemy. Also, the final four episodes, from Starbuck's shocking death to her even more surprising resurrection, were near-perfect. The episodes in between those 9, however, weren't great, as they were more self-contained and, thus, less interesting. The trial of Gaius Baltar is hinted at from the beginning of episode 11, when Chief Tyrol, of all people, takes the self-involved scientist down while examining the Eye of Jupiter, thought to be a signpost to the mythical thirteenth colony of Earth. Yet, the actual trial starts 7 episodes later. Slow going indeed.

Still, how can you argue the heartbreaking elements of the season, from Colonel Tigh's decision to kill his own wife because of her double-crossing ways to Laura Roslin's cancer arriving again to Kara Thrace's past life? Yes, it's an imperfect season, and hard to compare to season 2; even more, I'd bet it was less satisfying on a week-to-week basis for those watching in real time. For a person like me, catching up on DVD renders the season, as a whole, better; more proof of my not making such a big mistake.

Overall, season 3 is entertaining, but not much happens. Lee is fat, Lee loses weight, Lee decides to be a lawyer, Lee loves Kara, he hates Kara, and on and on. The most fascinating elements of the season are either set on New Caprica, or occur as the trip to Earth really gets going. The most interesting and weird character, Romo Lampkin (played marvelously by Mark Sheppard), is introduced at the end of the season, sunglasses, cat, and all. It's season 4 that has the great, not the good. We get to deal with the fallout of the revelation that Kara is alive again, that she has seen Earth, that Roslin is really dying, and that there are four Cylons in the fleet, and they are among our favorite characters; Colonel Tigh! Chief Tyrol! Anders! Tory! The manipulations, the deceit, the romance, the action, the science fiction, the performances...everything really comes together in season 4, especially the final 10 episodes, where the humans and rebel Cylons (the ones who break from the more vicious Cylons, lead by Dean Stockwell's Brother Cavil) deal with finding an Earth that is completely desolate and wiped out. We get suicide, another Cylon reveal (Ellen!), and more fallout from finding out the humans who aren't really humans. My favorite mini-arc from season 4 came when Lieutenant Felix Gaeta slowly unraveled after having his leg amputated; that it lead him to mutiny with Tom Zarek was surprising, but the intense two-part episode that ended with his execution in the Galactica airlock was great, on the same level of the Battlestar Pegasus storyline.

Then, the slow build to the series finale, "Daybreak." This finale may not be perfect (having Brother Cavil kill himself is fine, but having him do it so damn quickly is just weird), but has a host of great humor (President Lampkin? Admiral Hoshi? You jest.), moving moments (just watch Adama put his wedding ring on Roslin's finger and try not to cry, I dare you), and satisfying send-offs. I was surprised at how okay I was with the spiritual element of this finale, as someone who cares naught about religion. The idea that the Head Six and Head Baltar were angels or demons of some kind? I'm cool with it. Kara vanishing into thin air? Yeah, I'm cool with that, too. I was a bit iffy on the final scene, partly because it felt tacked on, the dialogue was more awkwardly delivered, and the robot montage felt too unsubtle, on a show that doesn't usually hammer its points home. Still, I can't wait to watch it again.

Hell, I can't wait to watch this whole series again. There were many fantastic episodes, many that made me grip my seat, many that made me laugh, many that made me cheer, many that made me tear up. The love affair may have been late and short, but I can now officially say that I love me some Battlestar Galactica. Also, its prequel, Caprica, is not something I'll miss. I'm willing to make the sacrifice of watching that show in real time. So, if you haven't seen the adventures of Admiral Adama, President Roslin (and how fucking amazing is Mary McDonnell? Honestly.), Starbuck, Apollo, and company....buy it and buy it now.