"Joan Rivers: a Piece of Work"

Depends on your tolerance for excessive swearing. Despite my abhorrance of four letter words, which punctuate practically every sentence out of her mouth, Joan Rivers is undoubtedly really funny. She is witty, clever and quick with repartee, an insecure workaholic performer. This documentary was so well done, that although I've never been a Joan Rivers fan ( in fact just the opposite), this revealing insight into her life caused me to to appreciate her as a person. I just wonder if she could be as funny if she didn't use foul language... SP

"City Island"

Don't let the lack of a more interesting title prevent you from seeing this funny, insightful, laugh-out- loud (often) drama. Yes, there's a lot of yelling in the Rizzo family by the the father, Vince, played by Andy Garcia and his wife, played by Julianna Margulies, but despite my dislike of yelling, I loved this movie. In fact, if you read my very early posts, you know I saw it some time ago -- but I went to see it for the second time, and still loved it! Almost every character (except the wife and the prison parolee -- {this actor is terrific} ) in this unusual plot is hiding something, and, with good intentions, is lying about it. A college age daughter and a teen-age son round out the excellent cast with flawless performances. Emily Mortimer , and Alan Arkin add their special talents to the mix. Yes, I know the critics found flaws, but from my point of view - it was a great success: engaging, insighful, marvelously acted and worth seeing the second time around. SP

Knight and Day

Indescribably absurd. If you are willing to be entertained, amused and captivated by the ridiculous, albeit deadpan serious -- don't miss this movie. It is sheer entertainment. With star power at full volume, Cameron Diaz and Tom Cruise are at their best (and that's pretty darn good!) . Not to mention Peter Skaarsgard who masters the role of sneaky, nasty, doublefaced villain to perfection. (And to think I used to like him!) A rollicking thrill ride with car chases galore, bodies dropping all over the place, our hero (or, could he really be a bad guy?) stopping in the midst of the multiple shoot outs to have a few words with Diaz, whom he has to periodically render unconscious for her own safety. Planes, trains, motorcycles; every spy cliche ever invented is marvelously incorporated. And there's actually a plot (espionage anyone?) unfolding in the midst of the fun and games. SP

Toy Story 3

Even the critics admire it --Deserves highest marks in all aspects: excellent animation -- the facial expressions clearly revealing the emotions of the toys (and the "people"), Dialogue is clever and the voices used are top notch! Humor, suspense, and so well done that you care about what happens to these toys as they play their roles in this well crafted interesting story. Refreshingly inventive . (Behavior of the various characters seems to parallel human behaviour. Perhaps some psychologist might want to do a comparative analysis. ) And, bonus -extra, Hooray! I saw it in simple 2D -- it didn't need any further dimension (and I didn't have to pay extra to wear uncomfortable goggles) to thoroughly enjoy it. Not just for little kids, I think most adults, who are young in heart will find it worth seeing. Oh, I almost forgot, it's even got love interest: "Ken and Barbie meet." (Wait til she see his wardrobe closet!) SP

The Duel by Anton Chekhov

Probably if I had read the book first (a Novella by Anton Chekhov), the movie might have been easier to follow ( or not?) However, every aspect of the film is so brilliantly done, camera work, acting, lavish scenery, that I didn't care that I didn't understand why all these Russian folks went to the same summer "resort" together. Resort isn't the right word, but from other reviews I've read, apparently the Russian Summers can be so brutally hot that people go off to the country to cool off. Among the players is a gorgeous married woman (gorgeous when she has her makeup on) who is with a man who is not her husband, and is, one might say, a "wastrel." (Drinks, gambles, gets obnoxious when he drinks) He receives a letter with the information that his mistress' husband has died. He doesn't want to tell her, because then she'll expect him to marry her. Another man in the group, a respectable, decent guy, is disgusted with the other man and you keep waiting for "the duel" which is actually worth waiting for. I've ordered the book, and will let you know if I understand the plot better after I've read it. Walking out of the theater, I spoke with several women who agreed that it was confusing -- but they enjoyed it, anyway. SP

Karate Kid

Jaden Smith does his parents ( Will and Jada Pinkett Smith) proud in his acting debut as the 12 year old Dre, transplanted to China when his widowed mother is transferred there. As in the original, there is the obnoxious bully ( hiss, boo), who has been trained by a merciless and evil (more hiss, boo!) vicious martial arts teacher. You have to suffer, along with Dre for quite a long time being picked on and harassed in his new school until finally (hooray!) the maintenance man played by the absolutely marvelous, Jackie Chan, reluctantly takes him under his wing and trains him inthe legitimate Kung Fu, of which, of course, Chan is a superb, intelligent Master. All of this, so that the kid can triumph (no surprise) over his adversaries in the grand finale. There's also the love interest sparked by a really lovely young (probably also 12) Chinese girl whose plays exquisite violin. Lest we forget about China winning the international ping pong championship years ago, there's also a scene featuring this, my favorite sport. (The only one I was ever good at. I love ping pong!) Yes, no money was spared in fillming this appealing (except for the nasty bully, etc) view of China -- but all in all, it was a great showcase for this fine, likeable young actor, who is a natural, and seems certainly headed for a successful career in films. (I'd love to see him in a movie with his dad!) SP

Coco and Igor Stravinski

The music of his "Rites of Spring" opened the film. It was a fabulous beginning sequence, showing how the first performance of this classic as a ballet failed. It was so revolutionary, and the audience was so outraged, they caused a riot. The two main characters were fascinating (Coco especially was unforgettable), the photography truly gorgeous throughout. The sex scenes sizzled - artistically and realistically filmed. I wondered if their affair really happened, or if the movie took major liberties with facts. So I went to Google. According to his bio, Igor had many affairs, and Coco was listed as just one of his possible liasons. According to the movie, his wife, whom he claimed to love, and "need" (she understood his music, and helped him with it!) finally took their children, and left him. (He and his whole family had been living at Coco's lavish country home. Although the bio didn't mention this at all. ) And Coco ended their affair. His music was all consuming for Igor, but his appetite for life was certainly passionate. (It struck me at first that the actor playing the lead, Mads Mikkelson, looked a lot like Jack Palance. The funny "coincidence"- was a scene in which Stravinski does pushups, probably to work off some of that excess energy. I was remembering when Palance appeared on stage and did pushups during an Oscar awards show!) SP

Not a Movie Review

Dear Followers, Friends, and Accidental Visitors, in case you didn't know (I didn't, until Guruka Singh told me) that in order for you to be notified -- via a TWEET -- when there is a new Post on this site, you have to request it from/on YOUR Twitter account. (I've just recently ventured into cyber-space, so I'm still barely navigating the learning curve of "how to do" things.) That having been said, I'm going to decide which movie to see today. Stay tuned... SP

Agora 4th Century

Yogi Bhajan often said, "Life is a comparative study." The truth in that statement could not have been better illustrated than my two most recent movie going experiences. After thoroughly enjoying the clever, hilarious, laugh-out-loud antics of "Micmacs" last week, I found myself on the verge of tears, and suffering through one of the most painful -- actually, I think the most painful movie I've ever seen, "Agora." Based on historical fact, it's a brutal, violent, (I had to close my eyes a lot) sickening portrayal of the murders of Christians by Pagans, the killing of Pagans by Christians, and the killing of Jews by Christians, back in the 4th Century in Alexandria. "Agora" provided a graphic record of the horrors of religious fanaticism, and how innocents can be caught up in the fervor of mob psychology. You may be familiar (I wasn't ) with the renowned philosopher, Hypatia of Alexandria, played here by the very beautiful Rachel Weisz. A teacher and astronomer, she was sought after, and loved by several men, but she was only interested in pursuing her studies. In the 4th Century most folks though the earth was flat, and that the planets revolved around the earth. She was actually ahead of her time. Because she saw no reason to convert to Christianity, she ended up being stoned to death. Anyway, for a miserable matinee, feel free to see "Agora." (As a film, it had a slow start, spending a lot of time in the marketplace. However, the photography was really excellent throughout-- outstanding in fact. The camera crews shot some scenes from a helicopter. )

Micmacs in the Dictionary

Following a lifetime habit, I looked up "micmacs" in the Dictionary, and lo and behold! Here's what it (Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary - 11th Edition) says: " 1) a member of an American Indian people of eastern Canada; 2) the Algonquian language of the Micmac people." Now, what that has to do with the marveloous French movie, "Micmacs" I have no idea. Meanwhile, in another unsolved mystery, I made a valiant effort to join Twitter. My purpose was to enable my followers, friends, and visitors to be be notified every time I post a new review. Trying to set up a Twitter account was a most convoluted, frustrating, and confusing process. I won't know if it was successful unless or until you, gentle reader, let me know. (Thanks to Guruka Singh for his written instructions, and Nampreet Kaur for her patience and endurance while we navigated the terrible tasks . If you would like to receive a tweet every time I post a new review, please try using YOUR Twitter account - (or not?). Meanwhile, I'm going to take a nap. God bless you all. SP

Micmacs

I really, really, really loved this film! I don't know what the title means, but maybe someone can enlighten me? It doesn't really matter; what matters is that the French once again, prove their marvelous comedic genius. This is not a "Hollywood"movie. The outstanding ensemble cast is made up of fabulous, weird or zany "circus-style" folks, each of whom lays claim to a special talent. Combined, they team up to help our hero (played superbly by Dany Boon), a lovable, brilliant, albeit strange, man (well, it's not his fault, after all, he has a bullet lodged in his brain) plan and achieve -- a-unique revenge against the arms and munitions manufacturers who are responsible (among other atrocities) for his father's death when our hero was a small boy. In French with English subtitles, the visuals are fabulous in themselves. All in all, when I wasn't laughing out loud at the absurdity on screen (which was often!), I couldn't help smiling anyway. every scene was a treat. If you like off-beat, quirky but clever humor, and total not quite non-sensical entertainment, run, don't walk to see "Micmacs." SP

Sex and the City

First of all, please forgive me. Take into consideration that today is Wednesday. Wednesday is like my "day off." My cleaning lady comes every Wednesday, so I have to go out to lunch and to the movies every Wednesday. If you've been following my postings, you know I've already seen just about everything worth seeing (according to me). So, it was a toss-up today between SATC (apparently that's what the insiders call "Sex and the City") and "Prince of Persia, Sands of Time." Both these films have received terrible reviews from the Critics -- which doesn't necessarily prove anything, except Caveat Emptor. So, armed with low expectations, I took the lesser of two evils (perhaps?) and saw SATC. (I figured at least it wouldn't be too noisy, as no one seemed to be brandishing a sword in the previews I had seen.) I should also mention that I had not seen the previous SATC movies nor did I ever watch the TV series about these four females. This film has something to offend just about everyone. Tramping (pun intended- at least as far as one of them is concerned) through the desert in high heels and wardrobes that beggar description (note my use of cliche, to match the cliche situations rife within this two and a half hours of over the top, absurd, ridiculous, and in some instances so far from Politically Correct as to be seriously insulting -- yet, I must confess, some of the scenes were funny, so, yes, I laughed. Yes, I was entertained, though I don't want to admit it. So kindly keep this information confidential. Signed, Anonymous P.S. The actor who plays Carrie's (Sarah Jessica Parker's) husband in this film is the same fine actor who plays the husband of Julianna Margulies character in the excellent TV legal drama series, "The Good Wife." I like him. Liza Manelli's dance routine also provided a few minutes worth watching. SP