Heavens Fall - 6 stars out of 10

Heavens Fall - 6 stars out of 10

"Heavens Fall" is a courtroom drama that allows all of its background details to be revealed through the trial.  Rather than spending the first 25 minutes dramatizing the crime, developing the characters of the lawyers and witnesses, and gathering evidence, the duration of the film is the trial and surprisingly, it works!  You may not develop an attachment to the lawyer as you would in a film that contains heavy characer development, the the focus of this film is the trial and not the lawyers.  This is emphasized by the film ending at the end of the trial, the fate of the characters revealed by several captions on screen.  And again, I was completely okay reading the information on the screen instead of extending the film by 25 mintes to dramatize all of the after effects.  The film offers strong performances by Timothy Hutton, David Strathairn, Bill Sage, and one incredible emotional moment from Azura Skye, while the shock that this unfair court case is a true story looms over the entire duration of the film.  "Heavens Fall" provides insight into the famous Scottsboro Boys by bringing this famed court case to life and showing the bigotry in the Alabama court system of the 1930's.  I'd definitely recommend it for its strong acting performances and interesting details of the trial.

Blind Faith - 5 stars out of 10

Blind Faith - 5 stars out of 10

"Blind Faith" is an angst-ridden, difficult film to watch.  You might not anticipate it from this made-for-cable film's slow start, but the energy picks up as the court case begins 35 minutes into the film and leads to some incredible emotional outbursts from its lead actors.  Even though some of the filming, acting, and music is indicative of a tv film, the script is very good and the main actors - Charles S. Dutton (who won an Independent Spirit Award for his performance), Courtney B. Vance, and Garland Whitt - create some impressive moments that are worth watching.  While I fault the editors for some pacing issues (like the beginning and parts of the end that drag a bit), the entire courtroom sequence is excellent and the twist in this film is shocking while perfectly pulling the story together.  If "A Few Good Men" is a 10, this film may only score a 5 but it is worth watching for its ability to instill a sense of anger through a frustrating father, controversial issue-centered plot, and unfortunate but necessary ending.

Beginners - 3 stars out of 10

Beginners - 3 stars out of 10

"Beginners" is an artistic film whose events are presented as a series of flashbacks taken completely out of chronological order.  Although the film is best known because of Christopher Plummer's Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor, I feel that the nomination doesn't have a leg to stand on because he basically just sat there and occasionally made out with men.  I do celebrate Plummer's successful film career but feel that this performance falls short of the bulk of his work and should not be the role for which he is remembered.  Meanwhile, Melanie Laurent has been completely overlooked as the lovely and fascinating Anna.  To be honest, I didn't latch onto the random spray painting scenes or many other aspects of this story, but Laurent is the only reason that I might watch this film again.  Also overlooked is Mary Page Keller as the mother, who had spunk and a refreshingly original characterization.  While this is far from Ewan McGregor's finest performance, I did love his interactions with the dog.  And after this film, who ISN'T going to want a Jack Russell Terrier of their own?  Especially if the dog's thoughts are revealed by subtitles.  I enjoyed some of the artistic qualities of the film, like the broken timeline that gave meaning to Oliver's struggles, and the "photo album" moments that break from the plot to express the difference between the decades; however, as a whole I didn't feel like the characters or story really went anywhere and the events were just a 104-minute perspective into the mundane.  Basically, people are going to watch this film because of Christopher Plummer's Oscar nod, but it shouldn't be hard to see that the spotlight shines on Laurent while the story disappears into insignificance.

The Notebook - 7 stars out of 10

The Notebook - 7 stars out of 10

"The Notebook" is a story of love that lasts a lifetime, no matter what the cost.  It creatively uses flashbacks to tell a passionate love story as the ending is progressively revealed through present day scenes,.  I don't worship this film like many other people do, but I'd consider it to be one of the better chick flicks.  The film hinges on the argumentative but loving chemistry between Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams.  They were perfectly cast in these lead roles as you'll surely pull for them to end up together in the end.  The wonderful thing about this story is the number of facets that are out of the lovers' control, from the actions of Allie's judgemental mother (who still manages to garner empathy from the audience after her awful actions, only through the impressive acting of Joan Allen) and the inevitable fate of the main character in her old age.  Just when you find that the flashbacks have been resolved, there is one more fantastically important piece to complete this puzzle.  Outside of the story, the script is very successful at developing the lead characters (in flashback and old age), not to mention that there are just so many great lines throughout.  I also love the use of Chopin's Fourth Piano Prelude in E-minor in this story - its mood perfectly reflects the somber emotions displayed by the main characters as they struggle to hold their impossible relationship together.  "The Notebook" is Nicholas Sparks' finest story because of its storytelling technique and well-developed characters, and I can easily see this one becoming a Valentine's Day tradition for any couple.

A Better Life - 6 stars out of 10

A Better Life - 6 stars out of 10

I'm not sure if "A Better Life" was actually as good as I think it was, but it seemed like a masterpiece after watching "Amexicano" one night earlier. (See my disdainful review of Amexicano here: http://jonnysdailymoviereview.blogspot.com/2012/02/amexicano-1-star-out-of-10.html)
The film is about a Mexican man who buys a truck (and the business that comes along with it) to create a better life for his son, only to lose everything when his truck is stolen.  The film chronicles his desperate search to locate and recover the truck.  Basically, it's "The Bicycle Thief," only with illegal immigrants.  I really enjoyed the story presented in this film, but it just could not keep my interest.  I found Spider Solitaire appearing on my computer screen on more than one occasion during the film's meager 97 minute runtime.  I enjoyed every twist along the way, but the characters were pretty static and the script didn't have much pizazz.  I was about ready to give up on Demián Bichir's nomination for Best Actor... when the penultimate scene occurred.  Wow, what an incredible 5 minutes of emotion.  It made the entire film worth watching.  I also appreciated the diagetic music within the film, bringing a Latin feel to every scene.  This may not be the most interesting film that I have seen, but I was surprised at the emotions it was able to create regarding illegal aliens in our country.  I won't be changing my stance on this issue as a result of the film, but it provided some interesting insight.

Amexicano - 1 star out of 10

Amexicano - 1 star out of 10

"Amexicano" is just as confused as its title.  Everything is awkward, from the cheesy interactions between its two main characters as they become unlikely friends to the ironing board-tattoo-stabbing scene (don't ask).  It is a strange entity, as the first half of the film doesn't go anywhere, and then the second half of the film takes so many random twists that by the end of the story, it is tough to believe that you are watching the same film.  There are so many eye-rolling scenes, my favorite of which is the main character sitting in front of the computer, looking up phrases in Spanish and practicing them using different inflections.  How could you forget when they invite him to play soccer.  Sorry, futbol.  They invite him to play futbol, he stands there like a big oaf until the ball comes to him, flails about, then somehow scores a goal.  And then they celebrate.  Sigh.  Speaking of celebrations, they even invited him to a fiesta... with balloons and an awkward guitar player in the background...  This film is guilty of failing to identify with true Mexican culture, and instead presenting every stereotype that they can think of, from the aforementioned things to day laborers on the corner.  Which is the OPPOSITE of the message that this film is trying to get across!  And all of this is under the guise of this obviously being a low-budget independent film.  Let's not forget that one of the lines is "Sounds corny but it's true."  Only the corniest movies would have this line included in their script.  At least Gabriela (played by Jennifer Peña) is hott.  But then they awkwardly turn this into a love story with several different guys... and the iron... From start to finish, I can't figure out what this movie is supposed to be.  It seems like it's trying to deliver a message about biggotry but instead becomes the stereotype that it fights against.  This one is good for a few laughs (even though it's not supposed to be)  but doesn't offer any sort of quality, from its opening lines about not abusing the Unemployment System to it's dumb ending that feels like a different film.

Ocean's Thirteen - 8 stars out of 10

Ocean's Thirteen - 8 stars out of 10

I am so glad that "Ocean's Thirteen" brought back the integrity of this series after its predecessor was such a disappointment.  The redemption lies in the successful equation: ensemble cast of big name stars + clever dialogue + creative casino heist = smash hit!  Al Pacino steps into the spotlight as the detestible casino owner who goes back on his word as "a man who shook Sinatra's hand."  While there is very little character development, it is not an issue if you've seen "Ocean's Eleven."  It was criticized for its lack of character development, but do tv sitcomes redevelop their lead roles at the beginning of each new episode?  It doesn't paint as humorous of a portrait of the individults as in the first one, but new characters (like Pacino and Ellen Barkin) receive the development necessary to make them relevant to the plot.  I would've liked more development but do not fault the writers since this franchise is all about the story anyways.  My favorite role of the entire film is David Paymer, the unfortunate reviewer for the Five Diamond Award.  The film keeps the crew interesting by featuring some of the guys that received less screen time in the earlier editions of the Ocean's series (particularly Casey Affleck and Eddie Jemison).  You have to love the involvement of Andy Garcia (the victim in the first film) to aid the criminals this time around, and I honestly did not find myself missing Julia Roberts and Catherine Zeta-Jones.  Matt Damon is hysterical - that nose is fantastic, and you've got to love his parents coming to the rescue again.  There isn't a mind-numbing twist like the first one, as the plan is straightforward from the start with a few little twists along the way, but it's still a genius heist that proves to be incredibly satisfying in the end.  No film could ever compete with "Ocean's Eleven," but this installment provides a lot of entertaining dialogue with that great Steven Soderbergh style and a logical heist whose only fault is that it doesn't face any major dilemmas along the way.