Rabbit Hole (2010)

This play adaptation plunges viewers into parental grief. The acting is superb and not surprisingly, the dialogue is rich and layered.

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A Dangerous Method (2011)

A peek into the lives of 19th century psychologists Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud through the lens of one of their patients. The film centres on Jung's desire for professionalism and moral integrity as it is challenged by a masochistic patient who occasionally has psychotic episodes.

The film is a product of Canadian director David Cronenberg whose previous work also focuses on the the mentally disturbed or abnormal. This one seems more grounded in reality and easier to follow than say, Naked Lunch. I'm not sure I agree with his bent on pushing for us to follow our passion so that we can be released (it seems he leaned much more on Freud's side of the debate in the film).

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Bridesmaids (2011)

No surprises really - it's a girls Hangover movie so it's a bit more sentimental and a little less crass.

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Wanderlust (2012)

Just a comedy about a commune in the spirit of Funny Farm or The Great Outdoors - city folks are just funny out of their urban environs. This film is full of cliché and one-liners.

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Barney's Version (2010)

Mordecai Richler's semi-autobiographical book is performed by Paul Giamatti and some lovely ladies. The story tells of Barney, a TV producer in Montreal, the women of his life and how he loses them. He is riddled with faults and still draws a lot of empathy because of his fierce love and honest confessions.

I enjoyed this quite a bit, mostly due to the emphasis on character, but also for the rich dialogues throughout.

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Divorzio all'italiana (1961)

Since the Roman Catholic Church forbids divorce, the only way to get out of a marriage is the either the unfaithfulness or death of one's spouse. When Ferdinando falls in love with his nubile cousin, he devises a ploy to get out of his marriage.

The film is quite clever in its portrayal of the very inept Ferdinando and we are completely flabbergasted that his cousin falls for him and at the grossly inept Italian justice system. But we laugh a lot thanks to ingenious acting.

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The Iron Lady (2011)

This film didn't try to accomplish too much by critiquing British Prime Minister Thatcher's policies, laying out her legacy and analyzing the woman herself. Instead it succeeds by focusing on the latter almost exclusively and through the frailty and vulnerability of an old Margaret Thatcher who is battling dementia and recalling her life as one of the most powerful women of the 20th Century and certainly one of the most steadfast British PMs.

Watching the film, you would forget you are watching Meryl Streep as she so boldly portrays such a cultural icon. The Iron Lady doesn't tiptoe around some of Thatcher's controversial decisions either, they just let her tell it as it is. As one who was not a great fan of many of Thatcher's policies, I did gain a appreciation for the love of country and for her sacrifice in public service.

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The Descendants (2011)

Alexander Payne (About Schmidt, Sideways) walks us through letting go and hanging on at the same time. The Descendants  is fresh and old at the same time, an unromantic look at some upper crust folks in Hawaii.

George Clooney plays a lawyer, father to two daughters, husband to a wife in a coma, and heir to family land - and he does so comically and pathetically. What I discovered thinking about this movie afterwards is that his character has quite a bit of moral strength that was simply disengaged - this narrative shows him putting everything into gear, testing his fabric.

I quite enjoyed it.

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The Corpse Bride (2005)

Brilliant animated feature! What could have been a very dark film is light, refreshing and full of hope - especially if those who are quite put off by the murky depths of the grave simply look at it as a parable (I could include myself in this category sometimes).

Tim Burton leads a troop of puppeteers and stop-motion animators to tell the tale of a Victorian fella named Victor who is betrothed to Victoria (I love it!) only to accidentally wed a corpse as he rehearses his lines in a cemetery. All of the characters - living and dead - give stellar performances and some of the puns are gut splitting hilarious (like when the maggot in the corpse bride's head pops an eye out and says "I'll keep an eye out for him.").

Fighting my dislike of celebrating death and all things spooky, I realized the amazing parallel that we have in Christianity: Christ, the bridegroom, will one day wed his church who's many parts will have been dead and so his bride could be considered a corpse. I think there is some valid parallel here. Some great resurrection images too (the young boy who approaches a walking skeleton, pauses, and then leaps into it's arms shouting "grandpa!").

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Blood Simple. (1984)

One of Joel and Ethan Coen's greatest films (and their first), Blood Simple carries us through the major splash created by an adulterous affair followed by a murder. The setting is a small town in Texas and the protagonist is the wife of an embittered bar owner. She decides to carry-on with one of the bartenders and they both become the target of a hit man.

The Coen's help us through the painstaking agony of covering up murders, escaping murder and committing murder using superb film techniques and selfish characters.

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You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010)

Woody Allen offers up another comedy about the insane consequences of participating in serial relationships and the constant hope and openness toward meeting someone more satisfying. We have two couples who become four couples.

There isn't much else to say, if you like Woody Allen, you'll like this one. It's silly, but riddled with truths (and debunked lies).

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Tulpan (2008)

Asa has big ears and because of this he can not find a wife. He lives on the steppe in Kazakhstan (the real one, not Borat's) with his sheep herding brother-in-law and family. Asa is torn between the big city life (personified by his peddling buddy) and his current rural life. The promise of a wife does not seem to be on his horizon.

The desolate and remote setting and characters eclipse the story though. Amazing birthing scenes of lambs appear twice in the film which alone make the film worth watching.

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It's All Gone Pete Tong (2004)

This biopic of legendary DJ Frankie Wilde is wacky and colourful - like it's subject. Thematic elements about this self-indulgent star only serve to contrast his transformation after he goes deaf and is resurrected by the honest love of a caring woman. It's kind of a disturbing start to what becomes a glorious finish.

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Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

Woody Allen's masterpiece! Here we get a sense of the struggle of man without any moral direction juxtaposed with a man searching for eternal answers (albeit comedically, and perhaps facetiously). A man is attracted to his wife's sister. Another sister laments her loneliness and inability to find success at the level of her sisters (in life and love). And finally, Hannah, who lives a virtuous life is being attacked on all fronts because of her virtue - poor thing!

Woody Allen plays Hannah's ex-husband who thinks he's dying and seeks an answer to life's great mystery: Is there life after death and if so, how should I live to best situate myself?

Quite an enjoyable film.

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Blue Valentine (2010)

Gut wrenching and superb. The film is a poem and a song. A sad sad poem and a sad sad song.

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Due Date (2010)

Robert Downey Jr. gets stuck driving across the USA with Zach Galifianikis. The antics: simply ridiculous. I'm not sure if this was a more self-conscious version of Planes Trains and Automobiles, but it failed to surpass it's predecessor in comedy and sentiment. It did beat it with crude content.

That said, I did laugh. I didn't cry.

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Schizopolis (1996)

Tough to follow, but oddly gripping, Steven Soderbergh stars in this psychological film experiment.

Fletcher Munson works in a generic office setting where he does virtually nothing while at the same time trying to climb the promotion ladder and satisfy vague demands by his supervisor. At home, his marriage is falling apart and he ends up living in an alternative universe - I think.

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The King's Speech (2010)

Splendid telling of a personal struggle of a public man. The acting in the film is so good, I have trouble reconciling that Colin Firth wasn't the actual King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

A commoner is solicited to help a prince with his speech impediment. The resulting relationship crosses the lines of tradition, status and doctor/patient.

Very inspiring - as the speeches of old often were.

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Capturing the Friedmans (2003)

This is a very well made documentary in that it reveals information in such incremental and emotionally charged ways that the viewer can not dismiss anyone's point of view.

A father and son are accused of molesting children in their basement as they offered computer classes. The film documents the accusations and through home movies it also follows how the accusations and sentences affected the Friedman family. It is a raw and gut wrenching film despite the lighthearted treatment of the issues by some of the family.

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Heaven on Earth (2008)

This Canadian film explores the dark side of long distance arranged marriage.

Chand leaves her family in India to join her new future husband in a suburb of Toronto. She is quickly resented by her mother-in-law and is viewed as a liability in her new family. Chand copes with the abuse she suffers through fantasy and finds the strength to rise against her oppressors.

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