Defiant Requiem - 7 stars out of 10

Defiant Requiem - 7 stars out of 10

“This room became the protective walls of something good, something meaningful, something healing, and something that showed everyone who was really listening that Raffi had put all of us, the singers and the audience, into another world.  This was NOT the world of the Nazis.  This was OUR world.”
“Defiant Requiem” is the chilling story of Raphael Schächter: a musician, Jew, prisoner at the Terezin concentration camp, and the leader of a performance of Verdi’s Requiem.  His statement was bold, using the Latin funeral text as a means to tell the Nazis that their own day of judgment would come.  This film tells his story through a modern conductor, Murry Sidlin.  This conductor has organized a concert as a tribute to the brave rebels who worked all day in the camp and rehearsed all night to make a beautiful and powerful statement against their captors.  It also reveals the obstacles that Schächter had to overcome as he taught every note and piece of Latin text by rote while many of his choir members were deported to Auschwitz throughout the concert preparation.  The interesting twist in this film is that the learning of the piece evolved from a rebellious statement to a necessary routine for these Jews to keep their humanity.  “Defiant Requiem” is a multifaceted documentary that explores an untold piece of Holocaust lore, the dark setting of the Requiem by Verdi, and the power of music to unite a people.

The Bridges of Madison County - 6 stars out of 10

The Bridges of Madison County - 6 stars out of 10

“The Bridges of Madison County” is an excellent story that moves at a slow pace.  I do believe that the pacing is necessary to cover the details of a 4-day affair and allow the necessary time for the characters’ feelings to properly develop; unfortunately, the film completely lacks momentum and has several boring stretches of quiet contemplation that can make the story tiresome.  Story and pacing aside, Meryl Streep is incredible.  How can one actress be so on-point for so long?  Her Italian accent is brilliant and her subtle emotional transformation is amazing.  Clint Eastwood is also great, bringing his raw character-type to this story.  These two do not seem like a likely pair but their chemistry works beautifully.  Even though things progress slower than I’d like it, it is all worth it for the payoff moment when they make eye contact in the rain.  Pure movie magic.  As asset to this film is its departure from the standard equation.  While there are certain inevitabilities, Streep’s character is far too deep and complex to allow the story to evolve as you expect.  I also found myself being very proud of her character for her final decisions.  The plot device of telling the story through diaries and flashbacks is effective, though I didn’t care for the acting of the modern-day characters.  I wouldn’t put “The Bridges of Madison County” on my favorites list but it was worth watching just for Streep and that moment in the rain.

Grand Piano - 6 stars out of 10

Grand Piano - 6 stars out of 10

Lovers of classical music will really latch on to “Grand Piano,” not because of its incredibly far-fetched plot, but because of the sheer power of the musical score that drives the film from start to finish.  From the opening notes of the concert, this worst-nightmare story unfolds in real time.  As a musician, I can appreciate the portrayal of stress that performers endure and this film captures that blend of stress and adrenaline… while adding in the factor of a sniper rifle focused on your hands.  Elijah Wood expertly fakes the piano playing.  As a pianist, I am hypercritical of on-screen pianists accurately hitting the keys (even Bugs Bunny), and there were only a few times that I disagreed with the editing (which is amazing in a film with so many extensive piano playing sequences).  While Wood is not a professional pianist, he is musical enough to make his performance convincing.  John Cusack’s voice adds to this film’s feast for the ears.  The story is a well-developed equation, strategically interjecting dialogue and action into this real-time concert.  This complex equation is strung together by a carefully constructed musical score composed by Victor Reyes.  While the score drives the storyline, it also creates the emotions of fear, calm, and desperation at strategic moments of the plot while sustaining the integrity of the music.  This may be one of the most effective film scores I’ve experienced due to its absolute importance throughout this thriller.  While the plot is over the top and there is some excess cheesiness toward the ending, “Grand Piano” has a Hitchcockian pulse that turns us into thelpless pianist who must unravel this mystery amidst the most important performance of our lives.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - 10 stars out of 10

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire - 10 stars out of 10

When a blockbuster is a enormous as “The Hunger Games,” it is easy to lose the momentum once the hype dies down and the expectation has been set for the sequel.  Amazingly, “Catching Fire” manages to thrust the film series back into the spotlight and is arguably better than the first.  Generally, the first film in a series is slower as we have to be drawn into the setting, introduced to the characters, and have to develop attachments/rejections of the heroes/villains.  The second film is always different because we can get right into the story and the action without explanation, but often times the writers run out of creative ideas by the end.  You would think this to be the case of “Catching Fire” as it’s the same story with a new twist, but this series is two stories in one.  The first is the obvious Hunger Games in which representatives from each District fight to the death, etc. etc. etc., but more importantly is the overarching story of rebellion against the Capitol.  The key to this film is that they use these Hunger Games to further that theme that runs through the entire series: Katniss as a symbol of hope.  The preparation and execution of these Hunger Games allows the writers to show the frustrations of the Districts (victory tour), the displeasure of the Capitol citizens (pregnancy revelation on tv), the tributes’ acknowledgement of the greater cause (Finnick), and the ability to fight back (shooting the dome’s force field).  After such an amazing cliffhanger ending, we can only dream of what will happen next (unless, of course, you read the books like any normal person).  All of this comes together by excellent writing and acting.  It is all in the details, like making us aware of the force field with a small event so that we understand the big events to follow, or subtly creating connections between characters who normally wouldn’t interact.  The clock concept for the arena and all of the special effects that create the hazards each hour?  Amazing.  This “world” is so well designed that it gives the writers endless possibilities within it.  The acting really draws out your emotions by creating connections with the characters.  The scene with Cinna is devastating, not to mention what the tributes must endure.  Jennifer Lawrence is amazing again as she creates a blend of emotions and heroics.  Phillip Seymour Hoffman is thrown into the mix and, along with all of the other supporting roles, creates quality acting throughout every minute of the film.  And it all comes together without excessive violence (in a movie about violence) so that it will not scar the young kids who are not old enough but will sneak into the theater anyways.  With a sequel this good, you can only imagine what the finale will be like.

Ernest & Célestine - 6 stars out of 10

Ernest & Célestine - 6 stars out of 10

“Ernest & Célestine” is a straightforward story about a mouse who befriends a bear, but the animation is so good that it doesn’t need anything more than that.  Even though I generally prefer to watch films in their original language, this film has an English dub that is worth checking out.  It uses big names like Forrest Whitaker as Ernest, Paul Giamatti as Rat Judge, and William H. Macy as Head Dentist, though Whitaker doesn’t sound like himself (which works well for the character) and the other two are in so little of the film that you barely notice them.  Still, Mackenzie Foy’s voice is so perfect for Célestine that it’s worth watching in English.  The mouths don’t line up perfectly with the dialogue but you can barely even tell due to the choppy animation style.  Visually, the film perfectly mimics the illustration of the original children’s stories.  Probably the best part of the entire story is the animation sequence at the end where we see the pictures being drawn.  I have seen this gimmick used many times, but never effectively as this.  I wouldn’t say that there is anything particularly special about “Ernest & Célestine” that would make me say that it deserved its Oscar nomination, but it’s entertaining, kid-friendly, and a good watch.

Pocahontas (1995) - 7 stars out of 10

Pocahontas (1995) - 7 stars out of 10

I have just as much fun ripping into “Pocahontas” as the next guy.  It is laughable to think that Disney put their A-team on this most-epic-Disney-movie-that-will-change-animation-forever and assigned their B-team to “The Lion King,” which would go on to become one of Disney’s masterpieces.  However, when viewing “Pocahontas” from outside of that perspective, there are actually a lot of quality things going on here.  It is different than most Disney animated features and I believe that’s what really attracted me to it this time.  The story is a far cry from the Disney princess films.  Pocahontas looks so different than any other Disney character, and it is the perfect contrast to the typical Disney-looking Englishmen as these two worlds collide.  The ending of the story breaks the mold of predictable happily-ever-afters but the writers still leave a smile on our faces with an iconic moment.  I won’t spoil it, but this sad circumstance transforms into an uplifting connection between the characters through the overwhelming crescendo of the musical theme.  The premise of the wind then brings the story fully circle in what is one of the most chilling Disney moments.  The film is a visual delight, from the incredible “Colors of the Wind” sequence to the animation of Pocahontas’ long, black hair.  Something that I appreciated more this time around was the music.  While I still believe that “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” was robbed for the Best Original Song Oscar, when you pair together “Colors of the Wind” with its overwhelming visual beauty, I know appreciate it much more.  I enjoyed most of the music, particularly “Just Around the Riverbend” and “The Virginia Company,” but couldn’t get into the bad-guy song “Savages” the same way that I can get into “Be Prepared.”  The film also makes good use of comical Disney animals, particularly the raccoon Meeko.  He makes a good sidekick for Pocahontas, stirring up trouble but never getting in the way of the story.  Unfortunately, I also have some issues with this film.  First, it is historically inaccurate.  While I understand that most renditions of this tale create a love story between John Smith and Pocahontas, it is fictional (and would be creepy if Pocahontas was portrayed as the 10-year-old that she actually was).  Second, Governor Ratcliff looks like a volcano.  I don’t really understand how a character can resemble a volcano but he does, and it is confusing why everybody looks normal except for him.  Third, I don’t care for Grandmother Willow.  I like the idea of Pocahontas physically communicating with nature and it creates a tangible way to show that she is sharing this world with John Smith, but a talking tree is not Disney’s best idea.  Finally, the voice acting is very hit or miss.  Irene Bedard does a masterful job of voicing Pocahontas and I really enjoyed Christian Bale as Thomas, but this felt like a very lazy performance by Mel Gibson (John Smith).  While the script sets these characters up to fall in love, it almost feels like Gibson delivers his lines without emotion in spite of it.  Finally, the language barrier between the Englishmen and the natives is very confusing, even for an adult.  I realize that you cannot use subtitles in a film with an audience ranging from toddlers to adults but this definitely could have been handled better.  In “Brother Bear,” the use of camera angles and stark contrasts between English and the bear language make it very apparent that people cannot understand the bear.  But when you rapidly transition from Pocahontas speaking to him in her native tongue, him speaking to her in English, her learning a few words and communicating with those words, but then he uses new phrases that she obviously has not learned yet but seems to understand but maybe doesn’t… it just doesn’t work.  The film is only 75 minutes long and a few extra minutes to show the development of their ability to communicate would have gone a long way.  When I set out to revisit “Pocahontas,” I thought that it would be the same old "Poke-a-Hiney" that I used to make fun of with my brother.  While it cannot compare to Disney’s greatest films, there are enough interesting and unique aspects that have left me with a positive impression and a desire to revisit it again in the future.

The Brady Bunch Movie - 7 stars out of 10

The Brady Bunch Movie - 7 stars out of 10

“The Brady Movie” takes a simple idea and executes it to perfection.  Whoever decided to put the epitome of 70’s family-friendly culture into modern Los Angeles is a genius.  The costumes, cheesy morals, and exaggeration of the character stereotypes bring the Bradys back to life.  The thing that entertained me the most is the soundtrack.  Every cheesy 70’s moment becomes appropriate through the jazzy Brady background music that we are so accustomed to from the original tv show.  The film was well cast, particularly Christine Taylor as Marcia (she may have played the role better than the original), Gary Cole as Mike, Shelley Long whose voice is perfect for Carol, Paul Sutera as Peter, and while Olivia Hack wasn’t an identical match for Cindy, she interpreted the role perfectly.  I think that it was really “swell” of the producers to bring back most of the cast in cameos, most notably Ann B. Davis who saves the day (just like she always did as Alice in the original series).  The use of Davy Jones  and the Monkees was hilarious and this film forms a very clever clash of cultures.  “The Brady Bunch Movie” is silly but serves as a perfect tongue-in-cheek tribute to the 70’s sitcoms that we all know and love.