Day 14: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Day 13: Silence of the Lambs

When The Silence of the Lambs was released, few people could have expected the impact it would have on our culture.  Many people consistantly argue over whether the film should be classified as a horror or thriller.  The argument is really invalid, as the film itself seems too mature to fit into the typical "horror" classification, and more in-depth and fastastical to compare to common "thriller" films.  For me, The Silence of the Lambs is, and I imagine will remain, one of the best films ever made.


The film is carried predominantly by the performances by it's two leads.  Jodie Foster bring a quiet strength to her Clarice Starling, while allowing her vulnerability to shine through, allowing the audience to connect with her.  Anthony Hopkins created quite possibly the most interesting character ever committed to film, with his portrayal of Dr. Hannibal Lector (although a previous version of the character was introduced in the film Manhunter, where Lector was portrayed by the amazing Brian Cox).  Hopkins easily delivers the better performance, and breathes life into an already complex and interesting character.

Anthony Hopkins as Dr. Hannibal Lector in The Silence of the Lambs

The true brilliance of the film was leaving intact the brutality and visceral nature of it's story, and not pandering to a wider audience by toning it down.  The film earns every bit of it's rating, thus making the film a more pleasurable film experience.  While many may have been turned off by the unpleasant subject matter, those people are now rushing home on a daily basis to watch any type of procedural show on TV, that owes it's existance to this film (CSI,  Criminal Minds, etc).


The awards and accolades received were rightfully given, and the film still remains relevant and current today as it did when it was released.  The film is worthy to be remembered, and if you haven't given it a chance yet, you owe it to yourself to do so.  As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD or BluRay, or add the film to your Netflix list.

         

Day 12: Love, Actually

Romantic comedies are a dime a dozen.  Very rarely does an original concept come along, that changes up the redundant format.  Not only does Love, Actually succeed at having an original concept, it succeeds at being one of the best romantic comedies ever made.Taking place during the days leading up to Christmas, the film also serves as a wonderful film to add to any Christmas movie tradition you may have.  Multiple interwoven storylines are told from the point of view of a mainly British, but well-known cast, following different varieties of relationships.


The cast here is phenomenal.  Hugh Grant, Bill Nighy, Liam Neeson, Kiera Knightly, Colin Firth, Emma Thompson, Martin Freeman, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Andrew Lincoln, Martine McCutcheon, Laura Linney, Alan Rickman, Rowan Atkinson, and many more all turn in wonderful performances.  The standouts definitely belong to Bill Nighy (playing an aging rock star), Hugh Grant (playing the newly elected Prime Minister), Colin Firth (playing a jilted writer), and Andrew Lincoln (playing a man in love with his best friend's new wife, which is a fairly different role than his current role as the star of AMC's The Walking Dead).

The primary cast of Love, Actually

Breaking down the extensive plotlines would take too much time, so do yourself a favor and watch this film immediately. As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD or BluRay, or add the film to your Netflix list.  For your viewing pleasure, enjoy the video of Hugh Grant's stress relief therapy from the film.

          

Day 11: Waiting

When it comes to comedy, Ryan Reynolds has terrific timing.  National Lampoons' Van Wilder proved that he could handle the weight of a leading role, and made what could have been a laughably cliche idea into a hilarious performance.  Since that time he's made a few other comedies (including Green Latern, which is funny for all the wrong reasons), and has also become a leading man in many romantic comedies.  Before really breaking out into the mainstream, he was able to film Waiting, a film which doesn't focus on his character primarily, but allowed him to shine brighter than any of the other notable names in the film.


As I mentioned previous, I'm quite the Kevin Smith fan, and Smith's debut film Clerks, is often considered one of the best indie films of all time.  Waiting plays like a future generation's homage to that film.  The film follows the operation of a fictional food chain called Shennanigan's, which recalls both the well-known former restaurant chain that it satirizes, and the brilliant name used in Broken Lizard's Super Troopers.  The restaurant is filled with quite the ensemble of eccentric characters, and allows each to share screentime pretty evenly.

The ensemble cast of Waiting

The film stays tonally and thematically even with Clerks in that in mainly follows the two main characters through their various interactions with the people around them throughout the day.  The dialogue is sharp, and while some jokes may play to the gross-out crowd, the setup and executions are well done, and the performances of the actors (especially Reynolds and co-star Justin Long) are near-perfect.

As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD or BluRay (although watch out for the rare "Nut Up or Shut Up" editions, as they get pretty pricey), or add the film to your Netflix list.

   

Day 10: Jersey Girl

Kevin Smith is one of my favorite directors. While many people don't appreciate his particular "style" (i.e. fart jokes and horrible camerawork), his talent for dialogue is one of the greatest, and has earned him a legion of fans with both the average moviegoer, and celebrities alike (Quentin Tarrantino, Robert Rodriguez, George Carlin, etc).  His ability to provide a calm and laid back set on his films is the reason why many of his actors, even those who have since become household names (hello, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Jason Lee) have continued to return his call and appear in even the smallest of roles.


The true mark of any great director is their willingness and ability to leave the comfort zone, and attempt something where they have no assurity of success.  For Kevin Smith, this was Jersey Girl.


A full 180 depature from his previous film entries, the film follows the story of workaholic media publicist in New York named Ollie (Ben Affleck) who falls in love with a beautiful woman (then-girlfriend Jennifer Lopez), only to see her die during the birth of their daughter, leaving him to raise their daughter Gertrude (named after her mother).  Due to the contraints put on to him by both his job and his newborn daughter, even the help of his father Bart (George Carlin) is not enough to allow him to function properly, and he is dismissed from his job after publicly trashing a client (the brilliant choice of Will Smith) during a press conference he set up to promote the client's upcoming film release (Independence Day).


The film skips ahead years later and Ollie is living with his father in New Jersey, and raising his daughter, nicknamed "Gertie."  He now works, along with his father, as a civil servant for the Highlands Boroughs, where they reside.  After a strange encounter with a video clerk named Maya (Liv Tyler), and a successful speech he gives to a group of unhappy citizens convincing them to approve a neccessary but inconvenient work permit, he decides that he misses his previous job and tries to reconcile his former connections in the hope that an opportunity will arise.  This conflicts with his current situation, and the desires of his young daughter, and he is forced to make a choice between the two.


While Affleck hasn't been the most reliable performer in his career, he pulls off the role gracefully, which is helped by Smith's ability to write for his good friend.  Lopez's role is more of a cameo, which is a blessing, since the film's box office was unltimately hurt the most by the "Bennifer" breakup and the cinematic "turd" that was Gigli.  Raquel Castro was a charming find, portraying Gertie, and recently was able to show off her singing during the premier season of NBC's The Voice. Mike Starr and Steven Root both turn in nice, although small, roles as work friends of Ollie and his father, Bart.  And Jason Biggs has a nice role as Ollies former protege, who ends up being able to help his former mentor on his journey back into the PR world.


The real gem of the film is the performance of legendary comedian George Carlin.  Having previously acted in both films and television, Carlin has never been offered a notable role in a film before.  Carlin had previously portrayed the Cardinal Glick in Kevin Smith's Dogma (which is my favorite, and arguably the best of Smith's films).  Here though, he's able to show off an amazing range, showing a softer side than most people know him for. 

Raquel Castro and George Carlin in Jersey Girl

While many critics, and fans of Smith in general, were not happy with this entry into his canon of films, I find this to be one of Smith's most accessible and heartfelt films to date.  The film's message has an even deeper effect on me now that my newborn daughter has arrived, but I was charmed by the film even before the birth of my kids.


As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD (hopefully a nice BluRay will be released someday soon), or add the film to your Netflix list. For viewing pleasure, you can a great scene with Ollie talking to Gertie and her friend Bryan about what he has just witnessed.

Day 9: Zombieland

This film is what I consider to be the cinematic equivalent of lightning in a bottle. While other films before this made zombies cool and interesting, Zombieland was the first film to bring that coolness to the masses. While it is still not my favorite zombie film (that title belongs to the epic Shaun of the Dead), Zombieland was able to capture the popcorn fun of what a zombie outbreak could be.    


The best decision made, like most zombie stories, it to focus on how the remaining human characters interract and deal with their surroundings.  The casting department really hit a homerun with this one.  Abigail Breslin (as Little Rock) brings a naive sensability to the group, which allows for some nice contrast to the remaining survivors.  Emma Stone (as Wichita), is amazing as always.  Her star power is constantly rising, and this film really played to her strengths.  Jessie Eisenberg (as Colombus) is perfect at playing erratic characters (hello, Social Network), but he really does a great job at balancing both the fear that comes with such a situation, and the desire to impress the beautiful girl that he happens to be surviving with.


The gem of the film is easily one of the greatest characters written in recent years who, without even much effort, completely steals the entire film.  Woody Harrelson's Tallahassee is easily one of the most fun characters to watch, and imagining another actor pulling off the role so seamlessly is hard to imagine.  What could have been an extremely cheesy one-note role was given incredible range with the writing, and with the superb portrayal that Harrelson delivers, and the character is given the best fully-realized arc out of all the characters in the film.  While there's no way the Academy Awards would ever allow themselves to do such a thing, it was an incredible shame that Harrelson wasn't at least nominated for a Golden Globe.

Jessie Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin, and Woody Harrelson in Zombieland

The film manages to keep things fresh throughout the story, and keeps the pace steady.  Even when the films slows down for a little exposition, the scenes are still interesting enough to keep those ADD-riddled viewers paying attention.  And while I'm sure many of you have already seen or heard by now, as nobody was able to keep it much of a secret for long, the film has quite possibly the best celebrity cameo in film history.  While I won't spoil it here for those who might still be out of the loop, the cameo is EPIC.

Also of note is the incredible art design of the film.  One of the greatest running gags are the rules of survival offered up by Colombus, and how the visual presentation of the rule interacts with the scene in which it is featured.  The film's scenes interacting with text onscreen is started with the opening credits, and continued through the film, and is one of the most fun aspects of the film.

All-in-all, if you haven't seen this film, please give it a chance, even if zombies aren't your thing.  Sure, there's a little blood and guts every now and then, but the real prize of this film is the story itself and the characters.  It's no surprise, given how strong both were, that the film was a hit with both the critics, and audiences alike, which tends to be a rarity these days, unless your a blue fluorescent alien or a teenage wizard.  As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD or BluRay (although watch out for the rare "Nut Up or Shut Up" editions, as they get pretty pricey), or add the film to your Netflix list.  For viewing pleasure, you can watch the trailer below.

         

Day 8: The 13th Warrior

Today, CTF features a film that didn't quite make a splash at the box office, nor with many critics, when it was released in 1999.  Since then however, the film has developed a devoted following, including myself, for one simple reason:  The 13th Warrior is hands down one of the best action oriented period films ever made. 


Set early in the 10th century, the film follows Ahmed ibn Fadlan, a court poet to the Caliph of Baghdad, who is exiled after an encounter with the wife of a noble, and given the role of Ambassador to the "northern barbarians."  During one of his journeys, his caravan is saved from a Mongol raider attack by a group of Norsemen.  Although faced with an incredible language barrier, Fadlan is able to make contact through his companion Melchisidek (Omar Sharif) and a Norsemen named Herger who speaks some primitive Latin.  When the Norsemen are  requested back in their homeland to defend an attack from vicious warriors that are deemed so evil that their name cannot be spoken, an oracle determines that the mission will consist of 13 warriors, but the final one must not be a Norsemen.  Because of this, Fadlan is recruited against his will to join the mission. 


The Norseman initially look down upon Fadlan due to his size, apparent weakness, and even the inferior size of the horse he rides. During the incredibly lengthy journey to the Norsemen's homeland, Fadlan is able to slowly decipher and learn the Norsemen's language by listening intently to their conversations with each other.  This talent, along with his ability to write, and his skill with his horse, begins to earn him the respect of the Norsemen, including their leader, Buliwyf.  As the mission begins to form, the story really kicks it up a notch, and the film's narrative really begins to take shape. 

Antonio Banderas in The 13th Warrior

The performances are quite amazing, even from Banderas, although  his Spanish accent does sound out of place for a Muslim dignitary in that time period, and is even more noticeable in comparison to the traditional accents used by the actors portraying the Norsemen. Dennis Storhøi is wonderful as Herger, and Vladimir Kulich is absolutely amazing is the insightful leader Buliwyf. 

I continuously reccommend this movie to most people, as the film is nearly perfect in it's execution of both quality storytelling, but also it's action-filled set pieces.  I normally stack this up against more well known films within the similar genre (Gladiator, Braveheart, etc), and The 13th Warrior more than holds it's own with those Academy Award winning films. As always, feel free to use the following links to purchase your own copy on DVD (no BluRay yet, but hopefully soon, as the cinematography is stunning), or add the film to your Netflix list. 

Day 7: That Thing You Do

While not a pitch perfect film, That Thing You Do is easily one of the most charming and continuously watchable films I've ever seen.


Written and directed by Tom Hanks, the film features a great cast, and an unbelievably catchy soundtrack, featuring the title song.


The film captures the essence of the era which it portrays, without taking itself too seriously, allowing the goofy charm to infiltrate every aspect. While certain themes and aspects of life are given a slight sugar coating, the true magic of the film is the pure innocence portrayed by much of the cast.


The soundtrack alone, an original mixture of 50's and 60's rock, R&B, soul, and other genres, helps elevate what could have been a cliche tale into becoming a magical piece of cinematic storytelling.


Don't just take my word for it though!  Get your own copy below. I definitely recommend the 2-Disc Special Edition (Yellow cover), which has got some amazing behind the scenes features. Also available is the soundtrack, which has been listed below as well.

      

Day 6: The Big Kahuna

An film that takes place almost entirely in one room, might not sound like a captivating idea. Filling that room (a hotel suite) with Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito, and Peter Facinelli, The Big Kahuna takes much from the play the film is based on, and offers up some very interesting relationships, that allow the characters to delve into everything from marriage and faith, to integrity and mortality. The performances are amazing, and if you can get past the daunting setting, the dialogue more than makes up for the blandness in the surroundings.

Day 5: Office Space

Computer issues (Ironic huh?) are preventing me from posting a lengthy entry tonight. The film in question is a pretty popular one already, but if you haven't checked out Office Space yet, here's a brief rundown of why you should, since I'm posting from my phone and can't go into detail too much.


Milton. Mr. Bolton. Flair. Swingline Stapler. Two Bobs. TPS Reports. Case of the Mondays. O-Face. Coming in on Saturday. Fax Machine Beatdown. Yeahhhhhhh.... "Damn, It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta."


If that doesn't at least pique your interest, perhaps it's not your cup of tee. As always, links below to purchase your own copy, including a pretty sweet gift set including the DVD as well as a Red Stapler, Lumbergh Coffee Mug, Mouse Pad, and more.