Footloose

Movie: Footloose

Genre: drama

Synopsis: This is a remake of the 1984 Kevin Bacon classic of the same name.  Ren (Kenny Wormald) was recently orphaned when his mother died of leukemia.  He moves from Boston to the small southern town of Bomont to live with his aunt and uncle.  He finds that in the aftermath of a tragic car accident three years earlier, a series of rather draconian laws were passed to “protect” the students, including a law that bans dancing in public.  Ren embarks on a campaign to revoke the law and to allow dancing back in the town.

My two cents: I really loved the original.  His version was pretty darn good – but not quite up to the 1984 original.  Character by character: Ren goes to Kevin Bacon in 1984, Reverend Moore goes John Lithgow in 1984, Mrs. Moore goes to Diane Wiest in 1984, Williard – I give this a tie between Miles Teller (2011) and Chris Penn (1984), Ariel Moore goes to Julianne Hough in 2011.  I also liked the aunt and uncle in 2011 better.  The 1984 versions were red-neck bible-thumpers whereas the 2011 were pretty decent people and very supportive of Ren.  The real stand-out I thought was Julianne Hough.  She is not only drop-dead beautiful, but is in a class of her own when it comes to dancing.  My only real disappointment was that they did not give Kevin Bacon some kind of cameo.

[168]

Where Soldiers Come From

Movie: Where Soldiers Come From

Genre: documentary

Synopsis: This documentary starts out shortly before the 2008 presidential election.  It follows five recent high-school graduates in a small town in the Upper Michigan Peninsula.  These five have grown up together and are inseparable friends.  Two of them enlist in the National Guard and talk the other three into also enlisting.  The five are trained in a unit that disposes of IEDs.  Ultimately, the unit – and the five friends – get sent to Afghanistan.  The documentary shows the men discussing whey they enlisted, it shows how they react to being deployed and how they are physically and mentally changed for the rest of their lives.  It also follows their families and girlfriends so we can see the effect the deployment has on them . . . and how they deal with the changes in their sons/boyfriends when they return.

My two cents:  I have seen a lot of movies/documentaries about soldiers in the war in Afghanistan and Iraq.  Until this now, “Stop Loss” was the only one that really touched on how soldiers handled things when they were back in the states. “Where Soldiers Come From” gives us a real-life look at the impact a soldier’s deployment can have on their families and loved-ones.  It also shows how a single deployment can so totally change a man for the rest of his life.  An example of how the family can suffer was given by the father of one of the soldiers.  He said that every time the phone rang, he was afraid it was a call to tell him his son had been injured or killed.  Every time he heard a car door slam outside his house, he was afraid it was the Army coming to notify him that his son was dead.

Bottom line: I have never had anyone I know, much less a family member, deployed in a combat situation.  This is one of those movies that I feel people in my situation need to see in order to gain some kind of understanding about the degree of the sacrifice made by our soldiers and their families and loved-ones and corresponding high cost of war.

[167]

Paranormal Activity 3

Movie: Paranormal Activity 3

Genre: horror-thriller

Synopsis: The third movie in the Paranormal Activity series, this is a prequel to the previous (which was a prequel to the first).  The movie spends most of its time in 1988 where we see Katie (played by Katie Featherston as an adult and Chloe Csengery as a child) and Kristi Rey (played by Sprague Grayden as an adult and Jessica Tyler Brown as a child) as children.  When things start going bump in the night, and Kristi Rey gains an imaginary friend, the girls’ stepfather starts using video cameras at night to try and figure out what is going on. What is going on is pretty darned scary.

My two cents: Not quite as good as the previous installment – still pretty darn good.  It has a number of those “gotcha” moments that will bring you out of your seat.  If you liked the previous two, you will enjoy this.  I think it would also work for someone who has not seen the first two – although I definitely recommend seeing them first, if you have that option.  My only real beef is one I had with the first one – you have a guy filming with a handheld camera.  Something happens that scares the crap out of him – and as he runs away, he keeps filming.  I’m sorry, but I just cannot run fast enough if I am looking through a viewfinder.

[166]

The Mighty Macs

Movie: The Mighty Macs

Genre: sports-drama

Synopsis: This is based on the real-life Cathy Rush.  Portrayed by Carla Gugino, in 1971 Cathy is hired to coach the women’s basketball team at the tiny Catholic all-girls Immaculata College. She is paid $450 for a year, there is no gymnasium, no uniforms and one single moldy basketball – but Cathy is happy. Coaching is her dream.  She strives to make her girls not only better players, but better people – and succeeds on both counts.  Her team makes it to the national championship in her first season.

My two cents: I loved this movie. It seems that Cathy rush is quite a legend.  She coached at Immaculate for six seasons – during which they made the final four all six seasons – and won the national championship three consecutive years.  The movie was an eye-opener into the obstacles in the path of female athletes forty years ago. It was inspiring to watch this team go from a rag-tag team that practiced in a storage room to national champions – while reminding myself that it is a true story.

[165]

The Big Year

Movie: The Big Year

Genre: comedy-drama

Synopsis: A “Big Year” is when a birder sees how many species of birds he/she can sight in one calendar year.  This is based on an actual “Big Year”.   Kenny Bostick (Owen Wilson) is the reigning American record holder in birding – with over 700 species sighted in one calendar year.  Brad Harris (Jack Black) is a 36 year-old divorcee who lives with his parents.  He lives for bird-watching.  His father (Brian Dennehy) considers Brad to be a loser and his hobby a complete waste of time.  Brad decides to attempt a “Big Year” on a tight budget while holding down a full-time job.  Stu Preissler (Steve Martin) is a wealthy company owner who has just retired for the 2^nd time.  He is determined to fulfill his dream of doing a “Big Year”.  Over his wife’s (Rosamund Pike) vehement objections, Kenny also decides to do another “Big Year”.  The movie follows the three throughout the year as Kenny puts birding ahead of everything – including his wife, Stu tries to put his career behind him, and Brad tries to reconcile with his father and to start a relationship with another birder.

My two cents: A really fun movie. Owen Wilson plays a great jerk, Jack Black and Steve Martin were also great..  The movie gave a peek inside the world of birding.  The encyclopedic knowledge of these birders is amazing.  I also enjoyed the ending.  Definitely a movie worth seeing.

[164]

The Ides of March

Movie: The Ides of March

Genre: political drama

Synopsis: Governor Mike Morris (George Clooney) is campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination.  His campaign manager is Paul Zara (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and his media guru is Stephen Meyers (Ryan Gosling).  Along for the ride is a campaign volunteer, Molly Stearns (Evan Rachel Wood) and Ida Horowicz (Marisa Tomei) – a political reporter.  Paul is in the campaign to win – period.  Stephen is in it because to truly believes in the candidate.  Stephen is considered the best media guy in the country and has a great future ahead of him.  Things start getting derailed when he meets Molly.  Then he makes a politically unforgivable mistake.  Stephen’s idealistic outlook takes a severe beating in what follows.

My two cents: Some great acting – but I felt the movie did not quite come together as well as it could.  But – this is still a really good movie.  The acting alone really makes it worth your time.  I think Ryan Gosling is way overdue for an Oscar – he is just great.   The transformation of his character from an idealistic campaigner to a jaded man who will do what he needs to get ahead is great to watch.  I think my favorite scene is at the end of the movie when Stephen gets on an elevator and turns to face Ida (the reporter) who exclaims – “but I thought we were friends”.  Stephen says nothing – but the expression on his face is worth a thousand words.  Don’t pass up this movie – the acting by all of the main characters is outstanding.

[163]

The Thing

Movie: The Thing

Genre: sci-fi / horror

Synopsis: This is a remake of the 1982 movie of the same name starring Kurt Russell which was a remake of the 1951 movie “The Think from Outer Space” which starred a young James Arness as the “Thing”.  An Antarctic science mission discovers a space ship that crashed 100,000 years ago.  When they investigate, they discover that not everyone on the ship died.  The survivor is able to replicate any organic being.  It becomes a race to identify whose identity the Thing has assumed before everyone is killed off.

My two cents: A pretty decent horror flick.  It was a bit much to think that something that survived in a spaceship crash opted to stay buried for 100,000 years rather than fly out . . . and the whole replication thing is a bit much.  But if you get past that, this movie should keep your adrenaline flowing.

[162]