To describe a movie he's seen that might have been good but was overshadowed by some quirk of the movie going experience, my friend Karen's brother will say "Saw it on a small screen in Canada."
That's how Bill Murray described why he wasn't picking some movie (Star Wars?) for best picture one year on Saturday Night Live's Weekend Update, where he did an annual Oscar picks routine, rattling off his predictions with comments like "Didn't see it" and "Who cares?"
I was thinking about this last night as I sat uncomfortably trying to block out the strong scent of alcohol and disturbing body contortions of the person sitting next to me at the E Street Cinema. Fortunately, the movie I was watching, The Lives of Others, was good enough that I was able to overcome the distraction.
That was one of the best of six movies I saw in the last week and a half. Here are my quick takes, in ascending order of appreciation:
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Venus: I wanted to see this for Peter O'Toole's Oscar-nominated performance, but found the movie dull, tawdry, and dispiriting. But if that's your thing, go for it! 1 star
- Avenue Montaigne: I slept through at least 10 minutes of this French film. (Unlike in Volver, which I also partly slept through, I had no external, nonfilm-related life reasons for dozing.) It gets an extra half star, though, because it made me want to go to Paris. (As an aside, its French title is Fauteuils d'Orchestra (or Orchestra Seats), which strikes me as a much better title. But I won't remove the half star for that.) 1 1/2 stars
- Music and Lyrics: Just what you'd expect: it's fun to watch Hugh Grant making an arse out of himself and Drew Barrymore is adorable, but the actually good chemistry between them was that of brother and sister (or, perhaps, uncle and niece). 2 stars
- Breaking and Entering: This film, starring Jude Law and Juliette Binoche, received mixed reviews; I'm siding with the detractors. Interesting, but ultimately messy. 2 stars
- The Lives of Others: Nominated for the Oscar for best foreign language film, this German movie about the relationship, of sorts, between a member of the East German secret police and the playwright he has under surveillance, is slow moving, but a wonderful, intimate portrait of intersecting lives in a period of history that I can't believe took place in my lifetime. 3 stars
- Zodiac: Wow. This movie, about the search for the Zodiac Killer, is 2 hours and 40 minutes long, but I was actually disappointed when a scene change signaled that it was coming to an end. I love a good murder mystery, and this one includes great dialogue, an interesting period setting ( San Francisco in the 60s and 70s), and amazing performances by Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey, Jr. (when Dermot Mulroney made his first appearance one friend said "what, is this the movie of the good-looking actors?"). This film was also an advertisement for modern communications devices -- imagine having to wait for a neighboring jurisdiction to mail you a copy of a shoe print. 3 1/2 stars
I look forward to your comments -- particularly regarding Venus, where my reaction was so at odds with the critics. (Am I the knucklehead, or are they?)
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