Drive Review

"You put this kid behind the wheel of a car and there is nothing he can't do." - Shannon

I didn't think movies like this were made anymore. I know, it is done mostly in homage, but the mixture of 80s style with late 60s dark tones in movies for Drive was refreshing. I heard this was intriguing, but I honestly did go in expecting more of a Transporter type action film. Imagine my surprise that it was an independent action movie (one of my favorite genre splices). While I will address the movie's visible flaws, I will mainly be detailing what I found so interesting about it along with the usual monkey business.

Based on the novel by James Sallis, Drive is, naturally, about a driver. The nameless Driver (Ryan Gosling) is a professional and pragmatic motorist. He makes his living in Los Angeles where he works as stunt driver for Hollywood action movies by day (irony, I guess), but occasionally he will act as a getaway driver for criminals. But despite living his life very minimally, almost as if he was just another part for his car, The Driver manages to befriend his neighbors, a single mother Irene (Carey Mulligan) and her son. Their growing bond is interrupted by the arrival of Irene's ex-con husband, who brings with him some seedy criminal baggage, including two menacing gangsters (Albert Brooks & Ron Perlman). Realizing the family is in danger, The Driver puts himself on the line to ensure their safety. He does this with extreme prejudice.

I realized immediately that this is a pretty overused story. It's the classic western scenario, a quiet nameless hero with a dark past wanders into the lives of some beautiful but unfortunate people and discovers that there are some things worth fighting for, then cue epic good vs evil battle. So, it's nothing new. But it is well done. And it is one of the better ones I've seen in awhile.

The acting department is small this time; not excellent but interesting, nonetheless. Of course, the face of this film is Ryan Gosling as The Driver. Over the past few years, Gosling has proven himself to be a charismatic and talented actor, even earning himself an Best Actor Oscar nomination previously. Unfortunately, this is not the movie to see that displays his full range. This is because The Driver character is very stoic, a man of few words. He purposely defines himself by his expertise, consumed by his craft and solitude. It in those brief moments where the character's true personality starts to break out that Gosling shines. The starring actress Carey Mulligan also suffers from the movie's emphasis on subtlety. In the role of Irene, the single mother, she also appears as a soft spoken figure, endearingly innocent but soft spoken still. Her role is primarily as a macGuffin, the motivation The Driver needs to progress the plot. I know she is already praised as a superior young actress, but I wish this wasn't the first role I've seen her in; it isn't a bad role, just not a very interesting one, even if the subtlety was intentional. And speaking of poorly utilized actresses, Christina Hendricks from Madmen is in this movie in a role that could literally be played by any hot actress. Hendricks is also a competent and well recognized star, and she has maybe three scenes in this and has lines in, I think, only one of them. Stellar. The primary supporting characters in this movie are pretty solid, however. I'm glad to see Oscar Isaac act as a believable guy as opposed to that cheesy villain he played in Sucker Punch. I felt for his character Standard, the recently paroled husband who tries to get out but...well, you know how it goes. Bryan Cranston isn't Walter White in this movie, the complete opposite, in fact. As Shannon he is a nice and sympathetic character, but his clear vulnerability puts you on edge whenever he is around the cold gangsters. Speaking of which, if Ryan Gosling's badassery or Christina Hendricks' chest don't sell people on this movie, Albert Brooks and Ron Perlman will as the Jewish gangsters Bernie and Dino. Perlman is an amusingly abrasive troublemaker, just the way we like him. Brooks is the real big bad here, though (I mean, he's not Frank Scorpio big bad, but it's pretty villainous). He is a testy, aggravated old criminal who wants to be reasonable, make money, and stay out of trouble, but is willing to tie up loose ends when things go wrong. So the acting was pretty decent, but I just think it could have been so much more impressive if the characters had been a bit more expressive. I know it's noir and everyone is shrouded in mystery, but, come on.

I'd be surprised if this didn't appeal to the art house crowd, Drive seems tailor made for that demographic. It is directed by Nicholas Winding Refn (a director chosen by Gosling), known as a visually fascinating and highly stylized director, so I guess the artsy aspect of the movie is kind of unavoidable. That doesn't mean its bad. The cinematography is gorgeous, with the cool light and dark contrasts so often found in film noir, and the overall handling of the film seems pretty well done. There are moments, glaring moments, when the art is overbearing (characters in this movie have pauses long enough and silent enough to make Christopher Walken role his eyes). That is this film's real problem: this is indeed a style over substance movie; too much of either is usually very apparent and often irritating. The thing is both style and substance within this movie resonated with me, it was just blatantly obvious that directorial art was held in higher regard than Hossein Amini's moody script.

Another criticism was the gory violence of the movie. It is not as if this was straight up gorn, in fact, the violence comes in so much later in the film that it still catches you off guard even if you do know about it. The complaints were that the violence was over the top. Well, I guess it is kind of. I haven't seen characters kill other characters so bluntly and viciously and quickly like this very often. But, thinking realistically, if someone is getting shot or stabbed blood will get everywhere. And to add to that, none of the dangerous players in this movie don't care about showy fist fights or kickboxing or gun kata, they try to kill each other brutally and quickly; The Driver takes guys down before they even get a chance to attack him. Over the top or realistic, either way, the instances of violence are undeniably hardcore.

However, what really struck me were the influences this movie seemed to have proudly on its sleeve. Drive is inspired by many introspective, psychological thrillers and dramas that famously stood out in cinema of the last 50 or 60 years. As opposed to huge marketable actioners like The Fast and The Furious or Transporter, Drive has more of the feel of a movie like Bullitt (with the precise, tricky, but not totally implausible driving) or Taxi Driver (with a disturbed individual going to messy extremes to protect innocence/family values). The pacing, soundtrack, and photography is very much inspired by smooth 80s thrillers; love the credits with the hot pink font cast over LA at night. I actually downloaded The Driver's theme song that played throughout the movie.

All in all, Drive may have been a bit misleading in its advertisements, the characters may been overly nuanced and underdeveloped, and there was that weird scene involving a beach and a latex mask, but I still found myself enjoying it. I can clearly see how polarizing movies like these are nowadays, but to be fair, movies like this aren't made a lot anymore. This is a movie where the characters sort of let their actions dictate what kind of people they are, it takes a lot of time to bury itself into its own dark tones. It is visually impressive, the acting was exceptional when it was allowed to be, and I just like what they did with the story (though overused, I still love this hero scenario). I was glad my suspicions weren't correct and it wasn't a rehash of an explosive Grant Theft Auto type movie; even if the movie isn't great, I still would rather see a movie like this than one of those.

Three out of four swallowed bullets.

This has been a rather lengthy from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

The Thing (2011) Review

"It's not human. Yet." - Tagline

I've never been particularly picky, so maybe this movie was worse than I thought it was. It certainly is not as good or as scary as John Carpenter's remake from the '80s. But as a prequel that tries to tie into the other movie, I'd say it did a decent job. My skepticism arose early on as I initially thought this was another goddamn remake, but later it was because I thought they wouldn't be able to pull off The Thing these days. But all of the problems I thought I would have with the prequel turned out to be rather enjoyable and still ended up being disappointed that the movie's problems were the problems of a remake. As a prequel, I thought The Thing would have zero or ham-handed continuity, which I don't think it really did. As for the remake problems, it could not help but go through the exact same scenarios in this film that they went through in the first.

Being it is a prequel, the new Thing follows the Norwegian science team the heroes from the original film discovered. These were the people who found The Thing and its spaceship in a glacier in Antarctica, so they of course are not going to make it. Along for the ride is the protagonist, paleontologist Kate Lloyd (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), who is recruited to oversee the excavation of the alien. A tampering with the ice block it is incased in allows the thing to break free from it's confinement and escape. You know how this goes. After killing the initial monster, Kate discovers that the alien's cells were infecting and imitating the cells of its victims. It becomes apparent to her that the thing has already started to kill and transform into the other scientists. But who is human and who is an alien. And the fight for survival begins. Grab your flamethrowers and trust no one.

Now I'm guessing what most people are concerned about is the technical aspects of this movie in comparison to the 1982 classic. It doesn't really compare. I mean they try to get as close to how The Thing looks when it just explodes into a violent monster of gore, but the computer generated effects never look especially real, not like something you could touch or believe could touch you. I will say the filmmakers are at inventive in how they made the special effects. It felt like they were trying as best as they could to remain true to the original version. The transformation scenes are on a similar level of grotesque and intense (really does feel like it'd be hard to react when a guy's whole body turns into half a dozen aliens). The gore aspect is almost as gratuitous as it was in the first film, which is good. I was afraid they'd try to tone it down or something. Really this did have some hardcore, freaky-ass moments in this movie.

Unfortunately, the plot is where it gets murky. Granted, the filmmakers do do a good job of making it appear like its a different kind of story, but, fundamentally, it is the same movie. A lot of the same scenarios play out here, but they tweak what happens in these bits in ways that were fresh enough to make to forgive it. But the fact that the same type of events happened in both the Norwegian station and the American one is not very unreasonable, given the nature of the thing. I surprisingly got some effect out of the story. I still managed to care about some of the characters; most of them seemed like likable people, especially for scientists and contractors. I could guess who was who too many times, but the reveals still ended up freaking me out. This is a prequel, however, so everything has to segue with the first film inevitably. I think the movie manages this well throughout the film, earning a little "oh yeah, that's cool" every now and then.

The acting was really well rounded. No one seemed like they were unbelievable (even though they all should be better dressed for Antarctica). The main star is Mary Winstead as the heroine, Kate. Winstead is a good actress who has proven competent in just about everything I've seen her in. And I bought her as this character. She's not Kurt Russell as MacReady, but she really does have that Sigourney Weaver vibe; that idealistic, uncompromising, but vulnerable Ellen Ripley thing. It works though and its not glaring. The actual Kurt Russell, problem solver guy character is filled by Joel Edgerton, who does a fairly good job as that guy. He's not totally MacReady, but he's just a guy like MacReady. There's always one in horror movies. Adewale long middle name Agbaji plays another American contractor alongside Edgerton, and I continue to ask how the hell is this guy getting such bad roles. Agbaji is a good actor, but his role here could have been filled by literally anybody. And yet still, he was decent even without doing much. Eric Christian Olsen is Kate's friend and the bad doctor's researcher Adam, and I actually thought he did good job for, again, such a minor role. Character actor Ulrich Thomson plays a corrupt douchebag once again as the head researcher who puts science before everything excluding his own life. All of the Norwegian team actors did well, considering their only main relevance was to die. The most notable one is Jorgen Langhelle as the intense Norwegian badass, Lars, a character we may already be a bit familiar with. I didn't have much of a problem with the acting.

Now for the creature itself. Is The Thing any better or any worse? Well, it certainly doesn't beat the horrific organic yet contagious look of the original, everything spewing from and ripping out of that hunk of fake human. Doesn't surpass that. In this movie, The Thing is clearly CGI throughout (though, I've read there are moments when special effects makeup or stop motion was used). That doesn't mean there is not a certain freakish quality to be applied to these new special effects. For one thing, the transformations happen a helluva lot faster. Bodies just sort of explode in a bloody mess of tentacles and jaws. The amount of razor sharp teeth for heads appearing in this movie could have convinced me I was watching Resident Evil walkthroughs. The thing and its many incarnations are all fleshy, pussing, swollen, ever changing globs of chaos. But one particular contrast would be that this thing is quick on its feet (its common with horror movies these days) as opposed to the original's tendency to either flail or just sort of expand. An interesting detail is that the first form we see it in, when it breaks from the ice, looks vaguely insectoid, almost like a different creature. It occurred to me that the thing's alien ship probably belonged to some other alien species that the thing encountered, killed, and imitated. Or not.

In the end, this The Thing prequel is not too bad for a modern monster movie. As stated, there are some hardcore moments. And the way this movie connects with the '80s film is satisfying in its own way. Aside from essentially rehashing the first movie in ways that ranged from refreshing to irritating, I rather enjoyed this flick. You might too.

Two and a half out of four fillings.

This has been a review ripe for Halloween from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

Top Ten Lost Characters (excluding Locke)

"You were all alone. You were all looking for something you couldn't find out there. I chose you because you needed this place as much as it needed you." - Jacob

(MUEY SPOILERS!!!)

Lost has some of the most amazing, fun, and fascinating characters I've seen. Which is funny, because they aren't all totally original or anything. The real reason they are so great is probably because the show spends a large portion of its time to let the audience get to know them. You learn of their secrets, their demons, what they've done, what they are capable of doing, and they all felt real (even The Monster). I enjoyed them all in some way or another, but if I had to choose ten favorites this would be it. However, yes, I am excluding my already proclaimed favorite character on the show, man of adventure and utter tragedy himself, John Locke. Let's begin.

10. Hugo "Hurley" Reyes

"I want some freakin' answers!"

I rank Hurley at ten because, well, Hurley is a given too. Not liking Hurley is the equivalent to making a thousand smiling children cry. Though he at first seems like an ordinary, generous, and laid back young man, he has his own secrets, naturally. If the fact that he is a multi-millionaire and businessman isn't surprising enough, the introduction of his infamous Numbers did the trick. Though anyone looking in on the outside would assume he had it all, Hurley was literally stalked by fate. Misfortune plagued his already out of sorts life after he used the Numbers, and it was his quest to find their meaning that led him to board Flight 815 and crash on the Island. On the Island, Hurley did his best to help others and make things easier when he could; he, actually, has an active role in many of the main events. Though terribly afraid, Hurley is also exceptionally brave and capable of leadership in desperate situations. I think a thing that really struck me when it was all over was that Hurley ends up the Protector of the Island. I just think it's cool that the true everyman, the vessel for the audience, in fact, winds up becoming such a powerful force in the world. It kind of exemplifies Lost's theme of starting over and discovering yourself. Hurley was funny, lovable, heroic, flawed, and probably the show's purest character.

9. Boone Carlyle

"Relieved...I felt relieved..."

Though his role was considerably minor in comparison to the others, I still thought Boone was a well done character. Boone was one of the first survivors to take an active role in leadership. Though strong and brave, he usually fell short of heroism and ended up being more troublesome than helpful. His story doesn't really kick off until he befriends Locke and they find the Hatch. It's then when Boone begins seeing things differently. I also liked that he started to let go of Shannon after that psychedelic trip (I need Locke to whip me up some of that!). Of course, if I'm being honest, Boone's true purpose was to influence the actions of Locke, Jack, and Shannon. This was accomplished when he became the first main character to die. And damn, the episode where Jack tries to save him is so very intense and depressing (though beautiful too in a lot of ways). But yeah, it's his death that turns Shannon into a wildcard, and, more importantly, begins the legendary cycle of mistrust between Jack and Locke. This point is echoed repeatedly as Boone makes appearances throughout the series after that, either in flashbacks, dreams, or hallucinations (and the afterlife). I liked Boone for his determination, heart, and common sense. His unrequited love and manipulations from his stepsister Shannon also gained him sympathy. Was glad he was part of the reunion at the end.

8. Jacob

"You've got ink on your forehead."

Next to his brother, Jacob is probably the most mysterious character in the series. Built up by the native Others to be the great, brilliant, magnificent, and even supernatural individual in control of The Island, Jacob was kept hidden for most of the show. His motives were said to include protecting the Island and befriending people seen as special. I never trust The Others though, so I will just go with who he really is. It was at the end of Season 5 and entirety of Season 6 that Jacob revealed himself. He was seen in flashbacks orchestrating events that would bring many of our favorite characters to the Island, before his death is rigged by his nemesis, The Man in Black. Near the end of the show, we discover that Jacob was born on the Island some 2,000 years ago, along with his brother, The Man in Black. In contrast to MIB's cold and pragmatic nature, Jacob primarily thought with his heart and was ruled by his emotions. This leads him to kill his brother in a fit of rage, while also turning him into a force of true destruction. In the present, he is still compassionate but is also more confident and wise. Yes, it is true that his meddling with fate resulted in the hundreds of deaths we see throughout the show, but he really couldn't risk his brother escaping. It's also admirable that he did his best to do the right thing and help others, even after he was dead. I also thought it was interesting that even Jacob, a character who we all thought of as a an all powerful deity for so long, was just another victim of some random fate. All Jacob wanted was peace and I can respect that.

7. Sun Hwa Kwon

"I lose, either way."

I think Sun is a character who had some of the biggest transformations. Her arc in the series mainly involves her growing more self reliant and developing a stronger personality. Sun and Jin episodes were always compelling even if they weren't as exciting as other arcs. Her transformation from the long suffering wife to independent hero was nice to see. I was also surprised that Sun was from a wealthy family (I thought they were both middle class when I first saw them). Even in her world of luxury back then, Sun's destiny was still controlled, this time by her parents. It is her father to be blamed for the gold hearted Jin's initial douchebaggery, as well. Jin was such a bastard during the first season, it made Sun's strength even more satisfying (even though, we are all happy they worked things out). Sun does a lot, actually: she lies to her husband and others, kills an Other, and smacks around several main characters. In the last few seasons though, when she gets her own money, power, and motive for revenge, she owns her corrupt father financially and literally, gaining control of his corporation and even begins a vendetta against Ben Linus. I won't again go into how tragic her and Jin's deaths were. I will just say that starting your revolt by unbuttoning your shirt collar and ending it with corporate espionage and assassination plots is quite something.

6. Mr. Eko

"I did not ask for the life that I was given. But it was given, nonetheless. And with it, I did my best."

Eko is just one of those characters you think of when you think of Lost. One of those stand out characters. Probably because he's a badass. At first appearing to be a chivalrous giant, flashbacks reveal his dark past as a vicious drug lord in Nigeria. His actions eventually end up killing his priest brother and leaving him mistaken for a man of god himself. Eko rolls with it, though, out of respect for his brother. His darkness never seems to leave him, however, no matter how hard he struggles to redeem himself. On the Island, he serves as a defender of his group of survivors but eventually becomes a new man of faith, next to Locke. But while Locke clinged to faith out of desperation, Eko did it more for atonement. Unfortunately, he is another character who was cut short upon making a true discovery about himself and died like the majority of the tail section survivors. I wasn't angry that he died as much as I was angry that his death is almost immediately forgotten by the rest of the characters. His true spiritual relationship with the survivors was intriguing, as were his interactions with The Monster. I think his main purpose in the show was to teach Locke not to turn his back on his faith. More incentive: Eko was known for cutting down his enemies with a machete; he carved himself a club, nicknamed "scripture stick", on which he carved insightful Bible passages; and he's not only the one person not to run away from The Monster, but he freaking stares it down. 'Cause Eko ain't afraid.

5. Jack Shephard

"I'm gonna fix you."

Jack is the first character we meet. His eyes open, he finds himself in some jungle, he is in shock, scared, injured, and confused all at once. Nevertheless, after about a minute of wondering where he is, he rushes to the scene of a plane crash, his plane. And he immediately charges into the fray as explosions, screams, and panic fills the air. He isn't concerned about himself or his wound, he only sees people in danger and he saves them. And amazingly the next scene where his wound is stitched up, he tells a past story that reveals that he is more than a collected, magnificent hero, he's an extremely vulnerable human being. And those two aspects intrigued me about Jack from the beginning. His tragic backstory was not as Shakespearian as Locke's or Ben's or as western as Kate's or Sawyer's, Jack's backstory is a bit more personal and real. Your drunk old man telling you not to be a hero because "you just don't have what it takes" when you're a stubborn kid might have some consequences. Jack's interactions with his father, his wife, and, yeah, even that weird tattoo artist he banged were all compelling and they really showed how this man's doubts and fears and anger constantly lead to his destruction (like most of the characters, I know). I guess it's poetic, a man so obsessed with fixing other people's situations is himself a broken man. His status on the Island did get tedious after about three or four seasons of denial about what was going on. Being a doctor who usually lives in a world of rationality (when it isn't about him personally, that is), Jack was originally a man of science. That's a good excuse, I understand, but there was just too much craziness happening in those few months he spent on the Island for him to keep insisting there wasn't anything strange going on. Yeah, so that became frustrating after awhile. I guess though, not every person can change too drastically in just a few months. Three years and one dead man of faith later, Jack didn't know who he was anymore and in this instance faith in the impossible was the only thing he had. In other words, he got more badass and everything he did became interesting. In fact, the man who once seemed to just be a cosmic rag doll started driving events and setting things in motion himself. Plus, his death was the only one that made me weep; then again, I think the whole last scene was perfectly designed to make you weep. Looking back, Jack's journey was really impressive and inspiring in its own way. The fact that he realized he had what takes all along was reason enough for him to be number five.

4. James Ford aka Sawyer aka Jim LaFluer

"I became the man I was hunting. Became Sawyer."

Every character was emotionally wounded in a profound way as a child, but I don't know if any of them got it as bad as Sawyer. Granted, I did find his backstory particularly badass because I love a good revenge story, but what makes it so good is because of how depressing it is. As a kid his parents are manipulated by a mysterious con artist named Mr. Sawyer, resulting in his father killing his mother and then himself (sitting on the bed little Sawyer is hiding under no less). This prompted him to write a letter promising revenge, but that path leads him to become just as good a confidence man as his nemesis, to the point where he takes on the name Sawyer too. His plight on the Island was very interesting. Mixing his abrasive southern demeanor with his brilliant cunning, he set out to get what he wanted more than redemption: punishment. And for the first half of the series that is the person he tried to be, feeling he should pay for the bad things he did. Thankfully though, the second half shows him embracing his opportunity to change things and be the hero he must have thought he was in the beginning. From a broader perspective, Sawyer is really just a very well done version of the bad boy character. One of the better ones I've seen, at least. He's also a genuine fan service machine (which I don't think anyone minded): he was funny, intriguing, badass, handsome (and very often shirtless), well acted, provided the majority of pop culture references, and was just a well rounded character with a fantastic arc. That's why he's on the list.

3. Sayid Jarrah

"What would be the use of killing you when we're both already dead."

Just because Locke takes home the prize for worst possible life ever doesn't mean the other characters' lives couldn't be routinely destroyed in the most powerful of ways. Next to Hurley, Sayid was an initial favorite character. The fact that he is one of the few survivors immediately trying to help and figure things earned him sympathy, as well as the racism and accusations that immediately befell him because he was Iraqi. Even cooler is the fact that he was a soldier (like I said, the survivors only certified badass), tech whiz, and natural leader. Plus the dark 'greater good' perspective that rested beneath his benevolence was evident early on and is built on very well. Sayid is a man who can never forgive himself for the people he tortured after the war. Ever. That's a compelling backstory right there. The fact that the Island events force that monster out of him is even saddening. Sayid is actually the best example of all of these characters who are constantly trying to be good and do the right thing but are constantly setback by the sins of their pasts. Also the fact that he already considered himself damned meant he was more willing to go to extremes for that greater good. But as much as Sayid tried to be a hero he still ended up believing he was pure evil, ruining many lives, losing everyone he ever loved, dying, being resurrected a hollow shell of himself, and then dying again. Hurley, probably his best friend, telling him he was a good guy in the after life despite of what Sayid himself thought was very touching. Was especially glad he got a happy ending. God knows he deserved it.

2. Benjamin Linus

"How many times do I have to tell you, John? I always have a plan."

Another character like Sawyer who you initially hate, than love to hate, than just love. Ben probably believed for a long time that he and his people were the good guys. It was hard for me to believe when he dedicated his time to abducting, harrassing, killing, and generally making life hell for a group of unfortunate innocents. Especially when he was only concerned with a few of them. But, as usual, as time went on, we started to see some different shades to the Island natives' sinister leader. For as grand and mysterious as he likes to appear, Ben is cut from much of the same cloth as the heroes. He was emotionally scarred as a child by an abusive father, lost his innocence when he killed his father and the island's DHARMA Initiative (which he was a member of in his youth), and became an intelligent manipulator, a trait that led to his becoming leader of The Others. It's especially painful that he was another character whose entire life may have been just another part of The Man in Black's scheme. He had the habit of mixing his sincere ambitions with more personal ones. Ben was even more dedicated to his personal destiny than his rival, Locke, to the point that he sacrificed his daughter when his power was threatened. An interesting aspect of season six was that Ben was no longer a powerful leader, he was just a follower, and as a follower he realized none of the real good guys respected or trusted him. I'm glad that didn't deter him from trying to redeem himself and fight for the right side at last. In the end, I liked Ben because he was freakishly smart and badass to boot, because he realized he was the bad guy and turned good, because Michael Emerson is an awesome actor, and because he made things interesting.

1. Desmond Hume

"God allegedly has bigger plans for me."

Odysseus. Billy Pilgrim. The badass Scotsman, Desmond Hume. All good men who are caught in the most unfortunate of destinies. Though, Desmond is pretty much a combination of the first two. Desmond is a true victim of love. His poor handling of good relationships usually results in him making life altering decisions that he hopes will make him a better person, but ended up leaving him more empty. Namely, participating in a race around the world, hoping to impress his beloved Penny's father, Charles Widmore, and instead gets caught in a storm while lost at sea. He awakens on the Island where he is...initiated into the DHARMA Initiative, and spends the next three years pressing the button in the Hatch. As fate would have it, one day Desmond isn't able to push the button on time, correcting the mistake just as things start to crazy. This, however, results in Oceanic 815 and all of the characters we know and love crashing on the Island. Though introduced as a half-crazed Omega Man in a hell of his own, he turns out to be a bit more once he integrates into the group. His longing to get back to the woman he loves is probably one of the show's most endearing and famous story lines; I think we were all relieved when Des and Penny finally did reunite. But as a survivor, his role is perhaps one of the more interesting. He becomes something of a leader figure along with Sawyer once he begins hunting and protecting the castaways. More significantly though, his attempt to save the world by self destructing the Hatch led to his very bewildering relationship with The Island's power. This includes allowing him to see Charlie's death in the future and trying to prevent it (which he could not), finding himself skipping back and forth between the present and 1996, and even crossing over into the afterlife for a brief second (or was it?) Desmond was a soldier and did time in military prison, so he is not one to screw with. Aside from his tragic love story and emotional vulnerability, I thought Desmond's real part in the whole show was as a variable in the lives of the survivors. He is responsible for crashing their plane, beginning the story, and he is responsible for bringing them together in the afterlife, ending the story. Just thought it was kind of beautiful that Desmond, a man most saw as a coward, who saw himself as living a life without purpose, in the end he got to be an essential part of so many lives, eventually even leading everyone to their own place of serenity. He was great because I felt for him and wanted him to win, because he was the coolest of the Island's super humans, because he introduced us to the Hatch, because he got back to Penny, and because he is just a likable guy. Truly one of my favorite characters.

So those are my favorite characters, but, again, I loved all of the characters, even most of the very minor ones. They are a testament to how good of a show Lost was.

This has been another top ten list from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy Review

"His news is bigger than your news." - tagline

This review, like most of my reviews, will not do the movie any justice.

There are movies that come along that will be watched again and again and again. They will not get old. We can recite nearly every line from them. These movies are legendary for some generations. This movie is called Anchorman. It was one in a slew of Will Ferrell films in which Ferrell had some kind of new weird job. None of the others really held a candle to Anchorman, though. And that's why it's worth talking about. This movie is hilarious in all of the best, in your face and screaming ways.

This is one of those comedies that is stupid in very genius ways, like Napoleon Dynamite or Austin Powers: Goldmember. The world of Anchorman is very clearly fictional, and all of the characters nearing a cartoon level. But that's what's awesome about it.

Set in the mid 1980s or '70s or '60s, I don't know, something retro, Anchorman is the story of San Diego news anchor Ron Burgundy (Will Ferrell). Burgundy, despite being an obnoxious douchebag (or rather in spite of being an obnoxious douchebag), is on top of the world. He is seen as something of an icon in his city, because apparently a news anchor is the only thing people in this city care about. Everything changes once Veronica Corningstone (Christina Applegate) enters his world, secretly jonesing for an anchor job of her own. Ladies man Ron wants the professional Veronica bad, which could spell trouble for him down the road.

This is one where I really need to talk about the characters. First off, Will Ferrell uses his man child routine to great effect here. Ron Burgundy, while passing himself off as a suave, sophisticated badass, is really a childish, delusional, semi-retarded prima donna. To say Ferrell plays it to the bone is an understatement. It's actually kind of amazing. One minute Burgundy is living like a king and acting like one and the next he is a self loathing mass of nothing and acting like one. His news team consists of assholes as colorful as the A-Team. There's lifelong cool kid Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd), the sexually confused party animal Champ Kind (David Koechner), and, most importantly, the mentally retarded and somewhat homicidal meteorologist Brick Tamland (Steve Carell). I think all Anchorman fans would not mind a spinoff featuring all three of these news team idiots, especially Brick and his tridant. There are many other fun celebrity cameos that make the movie even more ridiculous and hilarious. So yeah, the cast is great. You gotta love when everyone plays such a stupid situation as if it were so dire.

The movie's humor meshes absurdity with dark comedy very well. It's the type of comedy that's funny because it's stupid in kind of a genius way. That doesn't make sense, but that's how I describe it. Describing the comedy behind the movie will only come off as artificial and not as good. You just gotta watch it.

What carries the movie more than anything are the cartoonishly ridiculous characters that inhabit it. Ron Burgundy himself is the juice though. The legend built around him in the film sort of bleeds over to the audience. Because by the end of it, he is a legendary character. Of course he's a pretty poor excuse for a human being. He's the freaking anchorman and it's made pretty clear in the movie that he has no idea what he's reading on the teleprompter, but he can read it well. Along with Will Ferrel's famed man child routine, Ron has plenty of other quirks. He is suave and confident but ignorantly insensitive, he claims to be well read but can't pronounce 'jogging', he is a smooth ladies man but is a totally obnoxious simpleton, and he has some sort of weird symbiotic attachment to his dog, Baxter.

The writing by Adam McKay and Ferrel is so stupefyingly goofy. With the performances elevating a script to a level of comic gold, Anchorman is a solid movie. From an all news man street fight to a struggle for life in the bear pit, the movie is comedic gold. Watch it.

This has been a classic review from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading. And your welcome, Pugsley.

Clique Clique Boom

"A person is smart. People are dumb, panicky, dangerous animals. And you know it." - Agent K

As a high school student, I know a thing or two about cliques. I think the term is a bit broader than most people think these days. Fortunately this isn't a movie so members of the 'jock clique' don't harrass the 'nerd clique' with relentless sadism. The 'material girl' doesn't try to walk all over the 'plain girl.' If things like that do happen, it is not done as over the top as movies would portray us. We aren't archetypes, we are people and the way people feel about others is always different. Plus, a lot of regular people don't care enough about what another group is doing to try and go out of their way to do something to them.

I will say that certain cliques really do embody what it means to be a clique. Because cliques are essentially groups of like minded people who interact with each other more frequently than most classmates. Obviously, similar personalities means they are going to exert a certain tone and mood. It doesn't mean the people in those cliques will keep to themselves and look down upon everyone else. Unless someone's just a major asshole, most people will just judge individuals based on their personalities rather than the company they keep.

A clique is not necessarily a group of one single archetype. Sure there will be similar personalities, but if that's the case it's because people prefer like-minded friends. This isn't always the case either, so I'm not sure how to put it. What I do is try to find people who I am comfortable around. Who don't try to belittle me or piss me off. But you can be friends with anyone you want to be. Cliques don't matter, in my opinion.

This has been my thoughts from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

Super 8 Review

"Let's find this thing and blow the shit out of it!" - Cary

Super 8 might be the very definition of a summer blockbuster. It is the story of a group of kids, fresh into summer vacation, who begin their adventure by making a movie and then descend into a world of mystery as the hunt for a strange monster begins. It is a bit of a passion project from filmmaker J.J. Abrams, who has worked along side Steven Spielberg to create a homage to some of Spielberg's most classic movies, while also making a simply awesome film.

Taking place in the town of Lillian, Ohio in 1979, Super 8 follows 12 year-old Joe Lamb (Joel Courtney), a boy who is still mourning the loss of his mother who died horribly months prior. His relationship with his father, Sheriff's Deputy Jack Lamb (Kyle Chandler), is estranged, to say the least. As previously mentioned, the story kicks off while Joe is helping his best friend, Charles (Riley Griffiths), shoot a home made zombie movie. With a super 8 camera and a gang of friends in tow, Joe witnesses a destructive train crash while shooting a scene at night. Something breaks out of one of the train cars and disappears into the night. After an ominous warning from the man who caused the crash (Glynn Turman), the mysterious arrival of secretive military forces, and various reports of people, animals, and random objects disappearing all over, Joe and his friends realize things are not looking well for their simple little town.

And I won't spoil what it is that pops out of the train car, since some people haven't managed to put it together. I guess not everyone watched E.T. as a kid, because that's the feel I got from this movie. It has elements of other Spielberg classics as well, such as Close Encounters of the Third Kind and The Goonies, but E.T. was a bit of a composite of both of those films. I won't say the movie was totally original, because it was NOT totally original. It did feel like a J.J. Abrams movie, but with the remembrance and love of the Steven Spielberg movies a lot of us grew up with.

I will tell you only one thing about the 'something': apparently his name is Cooper.

Abrams is a good director. His films are well shot, well acted, and well written. He's one of those very talented filmmakers who can find a balance between a fun action movie and an emotional story with characters you can care about. There can be whimsy and tragedy within the depth of his work, so important elements are not disregarded too often. He's found a lot of praise because of his work in spearheading some of America's most popular shows like Alias, Lost, or Fringe in recent years. Super 8 is only his third movie, and so far it is probably his best.

The special effects are apparent but well done. Cooper is not the most impressive CGI creation I've seen, but he was still interesting to look at and makes some pretty ungodly sounds. The train crash sequence was brilliant, a sort neverending catastrophe that brought to mind the opening plane crash scene of Lost (an episode Abrams wrote and directed). Probably the best moment with the effects is the end sequence, which we've seen before in many other movies like this, but it was still cool and a little bit mesmerizing.

The music was by Michael Giacchino, whose beautiful and haunting compositions were one of Lost's trademarks for years. They also won him an Academy Award for his work on Up. Here he finds that tone again, the kinds that bring peace to the mind in calmer moments while creating a disorienting and horrific atmosphere in danger sequences.

I didn't live in the late '70s or early '80s so I'm not sure if they got everything right. Judging from my dad's reactions watching the movie, I'd say the film had plenty of the details of every day life back then accurate. An older character in the movie has a funny reaction to a teenager's walkman: (paraphrasing) "That's just what we need, everyone walking around with stereos." Oh the irony.

What I was most impressed with was the child actors in the movie. I mean, normally, I hate most movie kids. A lot of times they come off as annoying or awkwardly cutesy. These kids are good, and they're believable. Joel Courtney as Joe finds a lot of the charm of an innocent youth, trying to look for the good in the world and standing up for himself and others. Hope he gets more roles and increases his range. Probably the most impressive among them was Elle Fanning as Alice Dainard, a new addition to the film crew and object of Joe's affection. Fanning shows incredible acting ability in this film; if she was in older sister, Dakota's shadow before, she isn't now. Alice is the oldest among the kids. She has a troubled home life and finds comfort in a friendship with Joe. There is conflict in that relationship that is meant to be kept secret but is pretty clear from the get go. Equally impressive are Riley Griffiths as Charles, the ambitious ringleader and aspiring filmmaker. Charles reminded me of Ed Wood with his film zeal, maybe even Orson Welles. The other kids in this gang of unlikely heroes are the over anxious Martin (Gabriel Basso), sarcastic nerd Preston (Zach Mills), and hilarious pyromaniac Carey (Ryan Lee). All of them are awesome characters for this movie, and played better than I ever would have expected.

The adult actors bring it just as well, though they aren't as involved. Kyle Chandler, star of the series Friday Night Lights, is a bit of a standard movie dad. The kind that is too angry, who tries to remain stoic, who cares but doesn't know how to show it. Chandler is a good actor so he plays this role well. A man who makes do by not mentioning what should be mentioned and trying to connect with his son in all the wrong ways. A character like this must have a redemption, and whenever it happens in movies I'm almost never disappointed. Nor was I here. Ron Eldard's character of Louis, Alice's father, was a bit standard too, but played well equally. This man haunted by his demons, hard drinking being his only seeming salvation, letting anger he feels for himself lash out at other people. Both fathers could have had more development, but I felt for both still because of how well they were portrayed in just a few scenes. Noah Emmerich plays shady Col. Nelec, the military man seizing control of the town and hunting whatever got loose. Emmerich always looks like such a nice guy, but he very often plays corrupt or troubled characters. And he does it good. So acting, once again, I'm very cool with.

I highly recommend this movie. It is a very good time. Super 8 is not as original as much as it is refreshing. It has been awhile since I've been so taken with a movie. One of those movies where likable, relatable kids are at the center as the heroes, seeking out adventures under the noses of worried parents. A movie where revelations about the self and about life are found in the search for answers to mysterious, dangerous questions. Where family is shown true as a factor that can be as strong as it can be fragile. Where something different is more complex than what our fearful eyes would have us believe. A movie that feels kind of like an exciting, twisting roller coaster and also tugs at your heart. A damn good movie is what I call it.

This has been another review that comes a bit late from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

X-Men: First Class Review

Hank: "Are you sure we can't get you to shave your head?"
Charles: "Don't touch my hair."
Hank: "Right."

(SPOILERS, I guess; well, spoilers if you haven't seen the last four movies. You know what, no, shame on you for reading a review of the fifth movie when you haven't seen the last four.)

I loved the first three X-Men movies. Yes, even Last Stand. The Wolverine movie was meh. They are all movies dealing with being different, being repressed, and being yourself. They are also action packed adventures with a whole laundry list of super powered heroes and villains. X-Men was one of the first Marvel films to be released in the last decade and it gave a feeling of what was to come. That Marvel feeling where they take superhero stories and make them a bit more serious. Well, now we are on to X-Men: First Class, our second prequel to the first trilogy and I don't really know about it. I mean I like it but...I'm getting ahead of myself. Let me run down the basics first. First Class is the story of how the whole X-Men concept began, and also how two mutant leaders went from friends as Charles Xavier and Eric Lensherr to enemies as Professor X and Magneto.

A lot happens in this movie. A LOT. It takes place in the 1960s where mutants are just being discovered for the first time by the CIA. This happens when Agent Moira MacTaggert (Rose Byrne) finds out powerful mutant Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) is manipulating US and Soviet forces into conflict at around the time of the Cuban missle crisis. She seeks help from Charles Xavier (James McAvoy), a recently titled professor of genetic mutation. Xavier, as we know, is a young and powerful mutant himself who can read and control people's minds. He agrees to help the feds, and soon crosses paths with another mutant, Eric Lensherr (Michael Fassbender), who can control metal, of course. Lensherr is out for revenge against Shaw, who wronged him greatly as a child when Shaw was a Nazi scientist in WWII. Charles and Eric soon become friends and recruit other hidden young mutants into their team to stop Shaw and his Hellfire Club of evil mutants. This leads to a series of events that are meant to explain some of the things that happened in the previous films, of course.

Honestly though, there is not a lot of synchronicity between the prequels and the trilogy. Things happen in First Class, important and very mentionable things, that are never mentioned in the trilogy. It's like Sabretooh being Wolverine's brother in the prequel when they didn't even know each other in the first film. Still, the things that we did know about and are now shown were executed pretty well. The whole movie is well done. It's just not as good as I was hoping.

I did get what I was hoping for with the entire concept of prequels to this series: a film about Professor X and Magneto. They were probably my favorite characters in the first trilogy and I wanted to see how they got to the point where we first met them. And we got that. I won't do any comparisons between how James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender play the characters as opposed to the awesome Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, because they are different people between films. Both younger actors convey the older men's fundamental personalities. But this is back in the day when Magneto was a bit more reasonable (a bit!) and the Professor was the life of the party. But how they become friends and enemies was the best part of this movie for me. It was just as fun seeing the dynamic being established as it was seeing it being resolved. McAvoy and Fassbender carry this film, they are both very good actors.

The other mutants I wasn't all too impressed with. They are fun I will give them that. New characters for the movies include Havor (Lucas Till), Cyclops' older brother, I guess, who can absorb energy and project it lethally. An Americanized Banshee (Caleb Landry Jones), whose vocals are ultrasonic. An Angel (Zoe Kravits; Lenny's daughter?) before Angel, who has insectoid wings and acidic saliva. And Darwin (Eli Gathegi, from Twilight fame), who can adapt; it's hard to explain, but it's cool. I liked most of these characters, except that there was no real introduction to their team status. They just sort of are friends who would die for each other in the span of one weekend it seemed.
I felt about the same for the Hellfire Club. I guess I got as much as I expected out of Emma Frost (played by an underwhelming but stimulating January Jones), because Frost has always been a devious little sexpot. So I wasn't disappointed entirely on that end. Riptide (Alex Gonzales) can create cyclones from his palms, and that is probably the stupidest ability I've seen so far; I mean that is Heroes caliber of stupid ability. Nightcrawler's long lost father it would seem, Azazel (Jason Flemyng) was probably the most badass. Not only can he teleport, but he uses a sword. Not only that, but he uses his tail to stab people. He's basically classic Nightcrawler, just evil. Kevin Bacon as Sebastian Shaw is in his badass vilain element, I must say. Shaw probably has the most destructive power I've seen since Phoenix from Last Stand: he can absorb literally anything he is attacked with and give it back with devastating results. Bacon also gets to do a lot of different languages in this movie, all of which he spoke very fluently. He also plays probably one of the best Nazis I've seen in years.
There are other familiar faces as well. Mystique (Jennifer Lawrence) is on the side of good this time as Charles' childhood best friend and initial team member. This was a fun element as well, seeing a very young and confused Mystique trying to decide between living with intolerance and fighting for peace alongside the Professor or accepting who she is and seeking dominance with the more ambitious and accepting Magneto. Jennifer Lawrence, fresh from the Ozarks and in all her beauty, is pretty good in this role. She brings depth to the sexy blue femme fatale we know. Also Hank McCoy (Nicholas Hoult) appears as a young scientist working with the CIA who also has ape-like feet and incredible agility. He tries to discover a cure for physical mutations while leaving the powers intact. Can you see where this is going? Hoult is good as a young and nerdy Beast, even though his role in some of the story's elements contradicts the first films, but nevermind.
You know that scene you always think would be cool to see where the heroes sit down and brainstorm on what their hero names will be? It's in this movie, and it was probably my least favorite moment.
What sells this movie for me, honestly, is one cameo in the middle. Anyone who is a fan of the X-Men movies will probably agree when it happens.

I can say much about the action or effects. There isn't much I thought stood out. Shaw and the Hellfire Club lay seige to a CIA compound, which leads to some pretty sweet destruction. The last battle is like a small war, and is well directed.

I don't dislike this movie, but I was just kind of floored with how unbelievably silly it was. I know, most superhero movies are silly, but this was almost like it was outright admitting it while also trying to be serious. The director is Matthew Vaughn (director of Layer Cake and Kick Ass), so I suppose he might have brought a bit of a sense of humor to it. It's set in the 60s, so it plays kind of like an early James Bond movie. There is a large amount of half naked women in the film, for no real reason. I mean I didn't mind, but it felt almost exploitive while not being complete exploitation. The first thing we see Rose Byrne do as Moira is strip down to go undercover, which sounds like an oxymoron, but oh well. It was Rose Byrne, though, so I was very grateful, instead. The politics, military and how the Cuban Missile Crisis comes into play was all a bit much. It was like a weird version of Dr. Strangelove. When you get Michael Ironside and James Remar as military commanders in just bit roles, you are trying to be funny. I seriously think Remar was playing the same guy from the beginning of Pineapple Express. But being it is Matthew Vaughn, this film can be hardcore and emotional as well as witty. There are some majorly messed up deaths and injuries in this movie, usually involving Magneto.

So yeah, First Class was uh... a little weird. It was fun, though, I enjoyed it despite of its glaring chronological flaws and in spite of its parody-like abandon. I got what I wanted and a bit more. I'm sure audiences who don't knit-pick the shit out of movies like I do will have a pretty good time. Probably an even better time then I did.

This has been an uncanny review from Your Modest Guru. And no one got that.

Thor Review

"Whoever wields this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Thor." - Odin

As interesting as all of the Norse mythology is, the comic book arc of Thor never stood out to me all that much when I was younger. Especially my first introduction to him: you see, I was bought a package of three videos that featured old cartoons from when my parents were kids. There was Spiderman (which I was largely into at that time), with the old animation and classic theme song. I dug that a lot. The other two cartoons were of Namor The Submariner and Thor, both of whom I was still very uninterested in after viewing. Spiderman was a teenager, not only that but an everyday teenager who suddenly takes on the role of superhero after he makes a tragic mistake. Even as a kid and with such a cheesy cartoon that resonated with me. The stories involving Thor and Namor weren't anything like that. Namor was a king and a bit of an antihero who didn't seem to get involved in heroic affairs unless it immediately affected his people. Thor was a God who only seemed to be hanging out on earth to either court a mortal girl, stop less friendly vacationing deities, or just to amuse himself. Not very relatable. After watching the new Marvel film, Thor, he is still not very relatable, but it was still a good movie and I like the way his character is portrayed here.

This is another in a long list of superheroes I was really convinced couldn't be done. I'm starting to see that in a world where Hollywood is a dominant entity and technology has gone into a realm of real life science fiction, anything is possible moviewise. I realize this because I was very taken with the trailers for Thor in which the character is actually shown to be an arrogant brute of a god, earth is thrown into the mix of a celestial family fued, and Anthony Hopkins plays Odin (I was 8 watching that old cartoon and I knew then it would be him). Natalie Portman is also in the film, so there's a lot more incentive right there. Kat Dennings, too. Even more shocking than my interest in a Thor film is the fact that it is one of the better superhero movies Marvel has spawned. It's in the same class as the first Spiderman and the Iron Man films.

Here's the story (and forgive me, I am not familiar with the comic source material, so I don't know if it is true to that or anything): A long time ago Odin (Anthony Hopkins) and his Asgardian army defeated the warring Frost Giants and pretty much made a deal that he wouldn't kill them all if they would remain in their ice world. That peace is kept until Odin's son and heir to the throne, Thor (Chris Hemsworth), responds to a mysterious threat from the Giants by laying siege on their homeworld. This reignites the war between the Giants and the Asgardians. For this, Odin banishes the ferocious Thor to earth so that he will learn humility. Meanwhile, Loki (Tom Hiddleston), the god of mischief and Thor's younger brother starts making his play for the throne whilst discovering some dark secrets about his father's past and his own. Thor meanwhile must deal with being mortal on earth and becoming involved in the research of a science team led by astrophysicist and resident beauty Jane Foster (Natalie Portman), as well as the subject of interest for recurring SHIELD Agent Coulson (Clark Gregg). While all of this epic family drama is going on upstairs with Loki and his agenda, the real fun of course is watching Thor's fish out of water story play out. He is a God from a world vastly beyond ours, so he is a little perturbed yet slightly amused at how simplistic the mortal world is. It becomes apparent though that with the threat of the Frost Giants, and Loki's dark plans for Asgard and his family, Thor had best work out whatever issues his father had meant for him to work out so that he can redeem himself and save the day.

The mythological aspect is what I really enjoyed about this movie. The special effects used for Asgard, and anything mystical really, were pretty damn cool. Asgard looks like a lush, luxurious, and majestic place that sort of acts like protector of the wellbeing of all dimensions and realms existing. Also the cavalier, Shakespearian quality of the characters there is rather refreshing as opposed to our long line of sad and tragic characters. With those previously mentioned qualities, when something bad happens to these characters it is worse because they are people who are used to being joyous and on top of the world or universe or whevever the hell Asgard is. Plus, I sort of enjoy how family exists even in the most divine mediums. The relationships between Thor, Loki, and Odin are all very well done. They are all gods, but they are still father and sons.

There is also the special effects aspect to the film, which I honestly thought would be terrible. But no, the special effects were pretty cool. I mean, sure, it's obviously CGI, but its a superhero movie; you kind of have to roll with it. Asgard is made to be a sprawling, majestic centerpiece of order in the universe and it looks it in the film. They aren't up in the clouds, but are more at an important pinpoint in the universe. They also guard an interdimensional bridge, that seems to be made of rushing rainbows (trust me, its cool). The world of the Frost Giants, which I am not even gonna try to spell, actually looked more organic, despite being a dark and lifeless place. I think that actually might have been a set too, glossed over with CGI. The Giants themselves looked freaky and intimidating in a way that wasn't really unbelievable. I mean, when there were gonna be Frost Giants, I basically thought we'd get some goofy Abominable Snowman rejects. But these guys are not to be trifled with. There is a sort of guardian of the Asgardians called The Destroyer that comes into play later, that is badass. The best effect for me has to be when Thor travels through the portal/rainbow bridge; it's like light speed for a god.

The acting was also good. Chris Hemsworth plays very well as the god of thunder, Thor. He shows you every reason why to like him, why not to like him, and why he's redeemed in your eyes. Thor here is a confident and charismatic God, but he's a flawed one too. Like the best of Marvel superheroes, Thor has to lose sometimes and grow up as a result. Hemsworth as Thor is also funny as hell; when The Avengers movie comes out I don't doubt that he and Iron Man will get along. An actor I am not familiar with, Tom Hiddleston, is very convincing and even powerful as Loki, even though I thought the god of mischief would be a little more mischievious. Hiddleston shows Loki not as the gleeful deity of chaos but more of a black sheep in his family who wants acceptance. Anthony Hopkins as Odin is freaking awesome. Why? Because he is Anthony Hopkins...as Odin! He's playing the two things we always knew he played best: a man with absolute power, and a dad. Natalie Portman ain't winning any oscars here, but she did well all the same as Jane Foster, because Portman is awesome. I felt Stellen Skarsgard and Kat Dennings were underused as Portman's entourage of scientists, astrological or political, but they were still fun because they are fun actors. Clark Gregg is cool as Coulson, as he was in the last two Iron Man movies. Jeremy Renner shows up for a second as Hawkeye, because we needed to segue him into The Avengers movie somehow. Rene Russo is in the movie as Odin's wife and Thor and Loki's mother, and she doesn't do much. It's sad because Rene Russo is a great actress who I haven't seen in anything in awhile. Idris Elba, even though he could probably be doing better things, is a badass as Heimdell, the keeper of the portal/rainbow bridge thing. I usually am not a fan of sidekicks or buddies that come into play for the hero, but this is an exception. Thor pals around with four other warriors from Asgard, and they work because they feel not only like his best friends, but like his family. They are all badasses too, in case you were wondering. So, I was thorougly impressed with the acting as well.

There is no real magic as to why Thor worked so well for me. Well, actually, this movie was directed by Kenneth Branagh, a literal Shakespearian actor, writer, and director. The kind of extreme drama presented in some Shakespeare is a bit reminiscent to the divine opera presented in this film. So yes, I think the movie worked so well because of Branagh's direction and the actors' performances. It just seems like a bit more effort was put into this one as opposed to superhero movies that rely more heavily on the effects. Effects and acting seemed to be on an even keel in Thor, and that's good. I think most people will enjoy it. It's dramatic, it's action packed, it's funny, it's a fun movie.

This has been a superhero review from Your Modest Guru. It's been awhile. Thanks for reading.

Winter's Bone Review

"Never ask for what oughta be offered." - Ree Dolly

Winter's Bone is probably one of the best films in years. I am still on the fence on whether or not to put it in my top three films of 2010. It would be there with Inception and Black Swan, because, like those films, Winter's Bone is new type of film experience for me. It introduces a kind of place I live around...well, probably worse. My community and the ones neighboring it at least make a huge attempt to look respectable and clean, whereas the existing in this film seems to have merely resigned itself to squalor and darkness. It takes place in a bleak, ragged, small town in the Ozark mountains. Most people are in on the drug trade, meth production in particular. The film introduces a terrific actress who perfectly plays what I think is a true American hero.

The film takes place in this day and age, even if there is a lack of flash and glamour or really modern technology at all (the most technologically advanced thing I saw were the trucks the characters drove in and the guns they carried). It focuses on the impoverished Dolly Family, particularly the eldest daughter. Ree Dolly (Jennifer Lawrence) is 17 years old, apparently a high school drop out, and is taking care of her mentally gone mother and two child siblings. She is told that her missing father, Jessup, was arrested for cooking meth and jumped bail. More importantly, he put up his house as collateral for the bail money. Already a good macguffin, Ree has one week to find her father, dead or alive, and save the only home she or her family has. Jessup, however, went out for long periods before, but this time it is possible he might have been killed during one of his criminal excursions. This does not and cannot phase Ree, though, as she plunges fearlessly into the criminal underworld of her small but shady community. What ensues is a very dark and ominous journey.

This film feels real, and I think that's what it has going for it more than anything. Because the fact that it feels real is pretty disturbing. That strength lies in the harsh and ugly setting, the fascinating characters (which is all of them), and it's portrayal of both. There is almost never a sunny day in this film, as it is late winter. The scenes where Ree is walking down the road looks almost post apocalyptic; like a wasteland. The people inhabiting this wasteland do it justice I suppose. Like The Fighter, Winter's Bone does not have a particular villain. Everyone is a potential villain it seems like. Potential though reluctant. No matter what dangerous game they are a part of, all involved are still ordinary people who want to stay out of trouble as much as possible. This makes it complicated when a tenacious young girl goes willingly looking for it. Someone could get hurt. Maybe someone already has.

It was that mentality that struck me more than anything else. Ree does not have too much trouble hunting down leads, nor difficulty extracting info from them, because they either already know her or talk to her out of respect to her kin. But of course, whether they speak to her or not, no one is really willing to give her any of the gory details she's looking for. We get the feeling that everyone, involved deeply or not at all, is trying not to make any waves. This is apparent in characters such as Merab (Dale Dickie), one of three sisters who are related to and serve under local crime lord Thump Milton. Merab is at first cautious of young but fierce Ree, then she is frightfully warning her (as if for both of their safeties), then is outright threatening her. Yet there is always a sort of respect between them both, a respect Ree will will disregard to get what she wants. It's hard to describe this mentality. There is togetherness, very apparent community among many. But at the same time, all of these people feel like they are constantly on their toes. It's like they are cooly complacent whilst living in fear. It's one of those things that's better seen to be understood, if that makes any sense.

Another big strength is in that underlying mystery. As any of my readers will know, I am in love with mystery and the quest for understanding. This movie has an Apocalypse Now aspect where the hero(heroine) is looking for someone who may very well be six feet under. There's some suspense right there. The funny thing is, Ree doesn't care all too much about her father's well being, but is just fixated on saving the family she has with her at any cost. That kind of quality is what makes her character so damn fascinating. Just by looking at her living conditions (home or town), you can tell she has had a hard life. She's clearly made sacrifices; I mean, most of the seventeen year old girls I know would probably not be up to raising their family alone. One of the few moments she takes time to hang out with an old friend makes it seem like they haven't done it in ages, literally. She teaches her child siblings how to use guns, hunt for food, take care of the house, what kind of manners to have, as if she could die at any moment and they will be left alone. Not a bad idea. It's responsible and brave, but also tragic. It is put on her shoulders to deal with problems that far above her age range, but she does it because she is a survivor more than anything. With a fierce and undaunting resolve, deeply engraved sense of love and duty, and poignant acting ability from Lawrence, Ree Dolly is an awesome female hero. A badass, as a matter of fact. There is a moment where she is asked to decide her own fate and, after quickly sizing up her seemingly hopeless situation, she shrugs and bluntly answers with the only option that seems to be on the table: "kill me, I guess."

The other character in this story who contains a true hidden depth yet very apparent darkness is Ree's uncle, her father's brother, Teardrop (John Hawkes). Teardrop is in some way involved in this rural underworld, and is one of the first people to quickly refuse Ree any help. For the rest of the film (or at least until he can't resist his familial obligations), he exists as a threatening, dark presence that strikes fear into most of the town's population of scum bags and a certain respect is shown to him by the big cheese involved. He's also more evidence that dog-eat-dog fatalism runs in the Dolly family's blood. John Hawkes is an actor who has had small or supporting roles in many movies for the past 30 years. His intense, frightening, and ultimately poetic portrayal of Teardrop is a bit of a revelation, seeing as how I've usually seen him play kind of weasally lowlifes or eccentric motormouth types of characters (kinda like, Steve Buscemi, who is also capable of going deeper). Hawkes received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor against Christian Bale (The Fighter, and winner) and Geoffery Rush (The King's Speech) if that tells you anything.

Other good characters include the enigmatic Merab, played very convincingly by Dale Dickie. The last thing I saw her in was Breaking Bad in which she was a very grimy and pathetic crackwhore, thief, and passive killer. She isn't easy on the eyes, but she owns her roles like a true actress. Sheryl Lee stars as a former flame of Ree's father, though you may not recognize her (as me and my David Lynch fan father did not). She exudes a lot of the same tired and world weariness the other townspeople give off, but her scene is good. Garrett Dillahunt (a character actor who played Tommy Lee Jones' deputy in No Country for Old Men) stars as the Sheriff of the town, who is not as law abiding or enforcing as he seems. He plays this role with a sort of menace mixed with insecurity.

Winter's Bone is a very subtle movie. It is not full of glossy special effects. It has no big real huge moments or messages taht beg for awards and good reviews. It is simply trying to convey an atmosphere, and a story and characters that fit right into it. That it does well. It wasn't well advertised, so I'm sure there a few reading who may have not heard of it. Nevertheless, it has impressed me along with a great many other movies to have come out in 2010. It is dark, bittersweet, interesting, and edgy beyond belief. It's a crime mystery as well as a compelling drama. It also has one of the best scenes involving a chainsaw since Smokin' Aces, maybe even Scarface (no, never mind, not that bad). Still, without giving too much away, it is pretty hardcore. It featured wonderfully shown characters, and performances by actors I had no idea had such power within them. The director is Debra Granik, who captures the film's setting, the characters, all of the little details with such an insightful eye. She also co-wrote the film with writer Anne Rossellini, and the writing is wonderful. The dialogue all feels real, it seemed like real people would talk to each other like this. One thing I had a little trouble with was a scene involving a military recruiter. I think most recruiters, especially these days, don't care about the well-being of the potential recruit; the recruiter in this film seemed a little too helpful in making sure the character second guesses themselves and think real hard about joining the military (possibly because his character was from around the same area). It was nice, but I don't think it would really go down that way. Maybe I'm too jaded. Anyways, this movie was awesome and see it if this review was convincing enough.

Sorry if I meandered, I was more interested in specific things about the movie rather than the overall structure. Tried to fit everything in, as always.

This has been a review from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

The Fighter Review

"BOO BOO, WHERE'D YOU PARK THE FUCKIN' CAR?" - Dickie Eklund, I think it's my favorite line in the movie.

Movies are so impressive these days that its hard for me to decide which ones I think will be up for awards. The Fighter immediately looked good to me from the trailers. It looked like a good part for Mark Wahlberg, and Christian Bale definitely seemed intriguing. I guess I just wasn't expecting it to be Oscar caliber. I've watched it now, and I can say that it was. Totally.

Like every proud American, I watched The Rocky movies quite a few times as a kid. Those were always great flicks, and I guess as a result I've always been endeared toward boxing movies. Now, I'm no sports fan, but I imagine if I were to watch a sport it would be boxing. That being said, The Fighter is as good as Rocky in terms of a boxing movie. Because it does what Rocky did, and Ali and Raging Bull: it was about the boxer, not his fights necessarily. And it did it well.

The film follows Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), a welterweight boxer from Lowell, Massachusetts. Micky has not had many big fights, has lost most of the ones he has had, and is considered a 'stepping stone' for better fighters by most people. He has a lot of reputation to back up being a fighter, seeing as how his brother, Dickie Ecklund (Christian Bale) was a former boxer who once knocked down 'Sugar Ray' Leonard in a televised fight; an event which the people of Lowell, and Mickey's family, remember highly and proudly. With those kind of expectations on his shoulders, Micky feels the heat and is considering giving up the sport. And why shouldn't he? His mother (Melissa Leo) is a controlling self proclaimed manager who probably sees Micky's fighting career as a way to jump start the burned out Dickie's comeback career. Dickie Ecklund has his own subplot in which his attempts to help his brother are sabotaged by his drug addiction and self destructive behavior. Micky's only silver lining seems to be Charlene (Amy Adams), a fiercely tough bartender and his new love interest who encourages him to break away from his family and set out on his boxing career himself. With this combination of underdog story and the amazing family drama at the center of it, The Fighter is solid.

I will get the behind the camera stuff out of the way quickly, as I really want to get into the story and characters. This film is directed by David O. Russell, a very cool director who has previously directed the awesome Three Kings, as well as I Heart Huckabees (both starring Wahlberg). This may be his best film yet, though I still love Three Kings. He creates an atmosphere here that is hard to deny. All of these people seem real, and their situations are never really implausible. The writing by Scott Silver, Paul Tamasy, and Eric Johnson is witty, endearing, and sharp. The camerawork during the fight scenes is really cool too. Also, I will say there aren't many fights in the movie, but when they are they too feel real. This movie has an '80s training montage that training montages from the '80s would envy and that is something. With that in mind, I will end off by saying this film has a badass soundtrack. Just badass.

Now the fun part.

2010 was like a freaking explosion of some of the best characters to grace cinema in awhile. And all of these characters had actors that could back them up and back them up well. Let's start off with our hero, Micky. Micky is an immediately relatable character, especially if you are a little brother (like I am). Every little brother gets the feeling sometimes that they aren't as good or as greatly appreciated as their older brother. Usually that is just feeling. In Micky's case, it is the truth. Though he is strong and kind, he is also repressed and downtrodden. He fights to spend time with a daughter in his ex's custody, loses just about every fight he is in, and his family prefers a crackhead over him; so yeah, he doesn't have a lot to be happy about. Mark Wahlberg, a good actor who does not ever get enough credit, plays this kind of role convincingly and sincerely. Either through quiet subtleties or angered venting, Wahlberg puts Micky's emotions on the sleeve.
Now for the big show, Christian Bale as Dickie. Bale is famous for being a method actor, a chameleon who can just kind of become a role physically and mentally. He does it again here. Dickie at first seemed like a total goofy, darkly comic relief character (like a buddy in an Adam Sandler movie); see line at the top. From right off, you can see why people like Dickie so much. He's a likable guy, funny, light hearted, tries to be respectful. And, hey, he did knock down Sugar Ray Leonard, which is more than anyone else from Lowell can say, I suppose. He is also sadly and morosely portrayed as a total drugged out screw up who coasts through life on charm and reputation. Even if he is a pretty pathetic junkie, he's not a bad person and he cares for his family. Bale also does that weird thing where he changes his body for the role. When we first see Dickie (because he is the first thing we see) he looks like some freak they found on the street: wild eyed, rotten teeth, balding, very animated and hyper, and with an almost unintelligable Massachusetts accent. Needless to say, Christian Bale had earned his oscar and is one of the greatest actors working right now.
The other powerhouse in this film is Melissa Leo as Alice Ward, the boys controlling mother. Leo is an actress who has been working for awhile in a lot of independent films or highly raved dramas (21 Grams, for example.) She has always been an effective and honest actress, but here is a really touching and exciting role. Alice is a bitch for the majority of the film. She is often domineering, untrusting, paranoid, and selfish. But no one is really a villain in this film. Alice isn't a bad person, it's just the way she's always been and clearly needs someone to tell her what's what. She's a mother who cares for her children, wants her family to be a team, but goes apeshit if she thinks someone's trying to mess with whatever idea she has about her family. Leo is awesome in this, and yes, her oscar was also well earned. I also think I might be one of the few people in the world who liked her oscar speech; it was kind of cute.
Amy Adams was also surprising in the role of Charlene. This is because Charlene is a foul mouthed badass of a woman who knows what she wants, sees what others want, and tries to help them but knows when to help herself. Adams usually plays sweet, wholesome, almost mousy characters. So this was very fun. She's still Amy Adams, and being that she is, she was terrific in this role. If there was ever a great woman behind a great man in movies, it's Charlene.
Other cast members I enjoyed included veteran actor Jack McGee as Micky and Dickie's father, who is probably the most stable person in this movie. Mickey O'Keefe, a Lowell policeman and Micky Ward's real life trainer, acts really well as himself in this movie, a caring figure who is insulted constantly throughout the film. 'Sugar Ray' Leonard also has a brief scene as himself in the film.
So yes, characters are ace.

The heart of this film comes from the brothers. The end credits show real footage of Micky and Dickie, and it was surprising how accurate they were portrayed in the film. Real Micky Ward has a thicker accent and isn't as soft spoken, but then again anyone can be considered soft spoken next to Dickie. The struggles these two go through, their relationship and whatever family history is behind it is what I was most interested in. How they would resolve such delicate issues was some inspiring shit.

This whole freaking movie is inspiring. It shows people at their worst and how they rise up from that. That's some American Dream storytelling for you, people. Plus, it's been awhile since we've had a good boxing movie. I mean there was Cinderella Man a few years back (which I need to see), and the first part of Black Dahlia (which you should not see; or do, because it's almost so stupid it's funny). So I'm saying this is it. A great boxing movie, a great movie in general. Now all we have to do is wait for Warrior, the UFC knockoff to come out and bury this film in a sea of hardcore assholes. I'm kidding, of course, UFC is cool too. But that movie looks lame.

This is that review I told you I'd write months ago right here on Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

Black Swan Review

"The truth is when I look at you all I see is the white swan. Yes, you are beautiful, fearful, and fragile. Ideal casting. But the black swan? It's a hard fucking job to dance with both." - Thomas Leroy

(POSSIBLE SPOILERS; seriously I can never really tell what counts as a spoiler anymore)

Here's an Oscar movie I was really, really looking forward to. Black Swan is a psychological thriller for the books. It showed me that movies can still break new grounds and show you things you haven't quite seen before, along with a bunch of other movies in 2010. The movie features an outstanding, career making peformance of an already amazing actress, the ever growing power of a young talented actress, the intricate nature of the screenwriters, and the sheer brilliance of one of the most interesting American directors.

Black Swan is the story of Nina Sayers (Natalie Portman), a ballet dancer whose discipline and skill is almost completely unmatched. She performs in a company, whose most recent production is that of the famous Swan Lake. Nina's biggest ambition in the movie is to earn the role of Swan Queen, in which she must perform an elegant and serene dance as The White Swan personality of the Queen as well as The Black Swan, whose dance is exotic and invigorating. The company director Thomas Leroy (Vincent Cassell) knows Nina is perfect for the White, but is aware she doesn't have enough passion to be the Black. This brings conflict as Nina tries to find a tone in herself to dance as the black swan, while fellow dancer Lily (Mila Kunis) is perfect the role. In her relationships with the exciting and friendly Lily, the seductive and inspiring Thomas, and Nina's own obsessive but worrisome mother (Barbara Hershey), Nina begins to change. She begins to uncover the layers of her personality. She starts to gradually veer from her innocent nature to a darker one; to transform herself from the White Swan to the Black Swan. And I don't use the word "transform" figuratively either. But while this change could be exactly what Nina needs to be perfect, it could also mean her undoing.

The movie is art, in my opinion. Cinema at its finest. It has untraditional and exciting action, wonderful and powerful performances, and technical precision that is just amazing. I've never seen any ballet in my life, and I've seen even fewer movies about it. But Black Swan not only makes ballet look incredible and beautiful, it makes it look freaking brutal. Most men may write off ballet as something, I don't know, "girly." Those men should watch this movie. The dancing these people have to train for makes some sports athletes I've seen look like pussies. It's a lot of keeping your body conditioned, repetitive practice, careful timing, and elegance if anything. It also appears to be very competitive. Maybe they aren't racing a ball down a court or bludgeoning body against body on a field but what they do is very difficult. So difficult that I imagine it was a bitch for Portman and Kunis to prepare for their roles. At times I'm sure they used doubles, but for the most part it is pretty clear that no one else but them could be dancing. I'm all about getting cultured, maybe I should try to see one of these productions. You never know.

Director Darren Aronofsky is one of the most brilliant directors around. He chooses projects he gives a damn about, and cares even more about making them perfect. They flow together almost as well as the ballet in this picture. Movies like Pi and The Fountain are haunting films that make you question reality, while films like The Wrestler and Requiem for a Dream (which I honestly have not seen all of; I know, it's his most popular but still...) are films that show human beings down on their luck in ways we can't even imagine. Black Swan has all of those qualities, and then some. Aronofsky's filming during the dancing is jaw dropping, making it so that it moves effortlessly, rhythmically with Natalie Portman as if the camera was being guided by her every move. The writers Mark Heyman, Andres Heins, and John McLaughlin are also invaluable as they weave together a plot that twists and turns, makes you second guess yourself again and again as to what you are seeing. In that sense, they make Nina a filter for the audience; neither of you knows exactly what's going on. Though the special effects in the film are at times a little over the top, the dark mood of the film makes it mesh well and you don't really mind. Plus, there's not a lot of the special effects so don't worry. And how could I forget the always awesome Clint Mansell's score for the film, which is just as haunting and effective as his other music compositions.

Now on for the really fun part. The acting department was ace in this film, of course. I will start off by saying that Natalie Portman has been doing nothing but leaving her mark in cinema history lately. I'm sure a few decades from now, she will be regarded as one of the greatest actresses of all time. I'd make that claim already after watching this movie. Like Firth did for The King's Speech, Portman embodies her role to the point where you're sure no one else could play it. Though you feel for Nina for a lot of the movie, as I expected, you also dislike her a lot. I did at least. She is obsessive and vicious at times, believing any misstep to not only be someone else's fault but an action against her. What I was most intrigued with was her personality, as any gentleman would be. But seriously, Nina's mind is the most intense thing in this movie. It is clear as day that she is still a child. She lives with her mother, sleeps in a little girl's pink princess room, she is deeply hurt easily, I could keep going. Somehow, Portman portrays this unique trait so convincingly that it is shocking when she begins seeking out her darker or perhaps more mature self. You wonder what will happen to her when she reaches that point, if she reaches that point. The point is, Portman deserved that Oscar and I don't care what anybody thinks. But if Portman has left behind her days as Padme from Star Wars (it's actually kinda funny looking back now), Mila Kunis has left behind her days as Jackie from That '70s Show (also funny). Kunis conveys a lot of mystery and even more power in her role as Lily. She presents herself as a chipper, welcoming confidante who may just be a bit too reckless for Nina, but of course not everything is as it seems. With the roles she's been getting lately and how she's played them, Kunis is an actress I am really hoping to see more and in more movies like this. Besides, how can you not love Jackie? Vincent Cassell is an actor I enjoy seeing. He's always effective and convincing. I say this because I usually see him play cold blooded assholes (Ocean's 12, Derailed). I thought that might be what he was gonna play in this movie. It's pretty clear that Thomas cares about his play and his dancers, but is determined to get such a legendary production right, understandably. He has a tendacy to prefer some dancers over others, and an even bigger tendacy to sleep with them. His interactions with Natalie Portman were actually some of my favorite moments in the film. He knows her personality just by how she dances and encourages her to break free of herself (in hindsight, maybe not the best advice, but how could he know). The funny thing is that even when there are hot and heavy moments between them, they still appear to have a student-teacher relationship and I liked that. Barbara Hershey is Nina's mother, who I was sure would be domineering and Joan Crawford-esque. Well, actually, she might be. I saw her as very worried for her daughter, but maybe you will see something else. She was good regardless. A very bizarre performance is turned in by Winona Ryder (that's right) as Thomas' former star dancer and lover. She is a forgotten, tragic figure who was once great. This performance, with one scene in particular, might have been the creepiest. So if you can't tell I'm in love with this cast.

For those with the faint of heart, this movie is unbelievably dark and moody. But hey, I enjoy dark and moody. I AM DARK AND MOODY! Sorry about that. But for real, this is a visceral experience for the new generation. You'll know what I mean. Now it's not to say there aren't other things to be said about this movie. It does have it's moments of true beauty. The actual dancing, especially the last, is jaw dropping and just plain gold (take some fucking notes, Sucker Punch). The kind that makes you go "wow." Oh yeah, the infamous-even-before-release Natalie Portman/Mila Kunis sex scene was, well it was...eerie. Sure, it's sexy but at the same time it is very ominous. In fact, sexuality in general is one of the more ominous and even alien things going on with Nina throughout the movie. Her moments with Leroy felt almost pedophilic given the way Portman portrayed the character (not saying that's bad, just interesting). The movie also steals Fast Times at Ridgemont High's crown of most embarrassing masturbation moment. So kudos to you, Black Swan, kudos to you.

Aronofsky apparently meant this to be a companion piece to his last film, The Wrestler. I can see that. Both films have to do with masters of their medium in the biggest moments of their lives. Two people giving it their all for their passion at the expense of their body, their minds, their friends, maybe even their lives. But where The Wrestler was about Mickey Rourke searching helplessly for redemption, Black Swan is about Natalie Portman searching painstakingly for darkness. Aside from the dancing, there isn't a whole lot to Nina's situation. Nina is the one who sensationalizes everything, which in turn makes the movie sensational. Her perspective on things morphs from a simple company's rendition of a classic to that of a massive conspiracy to destroy her. In her mind, (possibly in reality too) it's not her style that must change but the way she views herself. But how must the Black Swan role appear to a girl as virginal and controlled as Nina: probably not just something sexy, but maybe violent, reckless, animalistic. Or maybe something a bit more haunting is happening. Maybe everything she sees is what is happening. But that would be crazy, wouldn't it?

Five out of five swans. This has been a quickly written review from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.

The King's Speech Review

"I BLOODY WELL STAMMER!" - Prince Albert

Speech impediments are extremely frustrating. For a long time I couldn't pronounce my "g"s and still have a little trouble with "s"s. The King's Speech focuses on England's Royal family and the ancension of a son to his father's place as voice and face of a nation, during a time when we were on the brink of our second World War. All of this is happening, yet this film, which walked away with the major awards at the 2010 Academy Awards, focuses not on Albert's reign and how he finds an enemy in Adolf Hitler, but on his crippling and embarrassing stammer that threatened his family's image, and perhaps even the country's image. The film works through precise directing, intelligent writing, a superb cast, and a lead performance that brings it forth into greatness.

The film is set in a time when speech impediments were seen as physically curable. Perhaps some were, but the physicians of this time failed to see the problem stemmed from something deep rooted into a person's psyche. Such is the case of Albert, the man who would come to be called King George VI. When the frankly retarded methods of Royal doctors prove ineffective, Albert's wife, Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter), goes around her husband's back to find one who is effective. She finds Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush), an Australian family man, Shakespearian actor, and full time speech therapist. Lionel is the more therapuetic one, who tries to find and overcome that deep root. His relationship with Albert is at first rocky, as Albert is very sensitive to criticism and humiliation. Lionel, however, encourages the prince to keep at it as they slowly make progress. At the same time, it seems with an ailing father (Michael Gambon) and irresponsible brother (Guy Pearce), the throne will soon be going to Albert. Having already failed numerous times when speaking publically, Albert and Lionel must work together and persevere if he is to bring any hope to his nation.

The movie is pretty clearly genius. It is masterfully directed, extraordinarily acted, with great dialogue and characters, as well as production designs that are very cool. Watching the 2010 Oscars, I was a little skeptical of Tom Hooper receiving the award for Best Directing (it was out of guys like Danny Boyle and David Fincher, and for some reason not Christopher Nolan). After watching the movie, however, I don't think they made the wrong choice. When he is not displaying the amazing set pieces and locations, his direction of the actors, especially Firth and Rush, is remarkable. My favorite moments involved the unique camera angles he shot to symbolize Albert's struggles. It's kind of weird but there is a training montage scene in this that was, even though it was about speech therapy, on par with those montages you see in sports movies like Rocky. David Siedler's writing creates a compelling story with even more compelling characters. It is very nuanced and perceptive, which I suppose it would have to be with a psychological story like this. Music, editing, and cinematography are also worked to perfection.

Now for the cast, and The King's Speech has a great cast. I seem to be very drawn toward British ensembles (watch Gosford Park). I will start right off saying that if anyone has ever earned a Best Actor Oscar it is Colin Firth. I was, again, a little skeptical about all of the awards the film received before seeing it, but after seeing it I knew they were well deserved. Firth manages to do something fascinating here. He performs a role involving a horrible speech impediment, and convinces us 100% that he actually has it. It isn't just public speaking either, it's all the time. There are moments when he's stammering and you just are wincing because it seems so humiliating and sad. We have all mumbled, we have all gotten tongue tied, we've screwed up our speech in some way before, but what Prince Albert had was literally something off in his subconscious. Being a great actor, Firth doesn't let his mastered stammer carry the film or his role, because Albert is more complex than that. He feels shame, bitterness, embarrassment, all leading to wounded pride. All he really wants is to be better, is to overcome his issues not so much for family and country (though both are crucial to him), but really to help himself. Colin Firth conveys all of this, so bravo. But where we had a perfectly convincing portrayal of a man whose speech was broken, we needed a perfectly convincing portrayal of a man who specializes in fixing speech. Geoffrey Rush reestablishes himself as a powerful actor, because, let's face it, most of us younger viewers first knew him as Captain Barbossa. Rush gives a superlative yet very entertaining performance as Lionel. He is great at showing someone who is very passionate about one thing (Shakespearian acting) despite being infinitely more talented at something else (speech therapy). Rush portrays Lionel as everything he needs to be and more: Intelligent, understanding, even loving but regretful and unaccomplished. Helena Bonham Carter was, well, Helena Bonham Carter. I'm kidding, but she does do what she does well and that's not really a bad thing. She portrays Princess and later Queen Elizabeth as a clever, articulate, and compassionate woman of action who loves her man and tries to help and support him to the best of her ability, even when he wishes she'd leave him be. In playing this, Carter is very good. Besides, I don't think I've ever disliked her in a movie, so she already has a plus. Starring as Prince Albert's father and brother, Michael Gambon and Guy Pearce perform very well as very douchy guys (surprise, surprise). When he's not a gay head wizard, Gambon often plays cold men. In his few scenes here, we get an idea of what Albert's life of Royalty has been like. Pearce doesn't play the brother as stupid but just afraid. He falls back on being the dick older brother when frustrated at his own situation. Other cast members such as Jennifer Ehle as Donal Logue's wife, Derek Jacobi as Cosmo Gordon Lang (The Archbishop of Canterbury), and Timothy Spall as Winston Churchill. I must say, out of all of the performances, Spall as Churchill may have been the one I enjoyed the most. So yes, as you can imagine, they brought it in the acting department.

Overall, The King's Speech is very much an Oscar Film. By that I mean that it was pretty clear that this was the kind of movie that would immediately make those leading Academy members and movie loving celebrities all hot around the award season. Having great reviews also helps. But an Oscar Film is such because it is spectacular. The King's Speech is such a movie. It's a unique and very thoughtful idea brought to the big screen, or small screens now, I guess. I enjoyed every second of it and knew walking out why it had gained such praise. It earned what it got, that cannot be denied.

Five out of five Royal Weddings. This has been a long awaited (I'm sure (:) review from Your Modest Guru. Thanks for reading.