Movie thoughts

Evening

I wanted to like this movie, I really did. Chock full of three generations of terrific actors, including favs like Meryl Streep and Toni Collette (though they both had very small roles), and based on a novel, which automatically biases me in favor of it. However, the movie lacked some subtle factor that would have really involved me in the characters, though I can't put my finger on what it was. And I was seriously distracted by the way most of these wonderful women looked. Case in point - how insanely skinny they all are. Some are naturally thin, including Vanessa Redgrave, but others looked like they crash dieted prior to filming, including Toni Collette and Claire Danes. And, except for Vanessa Redgrave as a notable example of someone who actually looked her age, their faces are all grossly taut and in some cases quite unnatural looking, especially Natasha Richardson, who looks like she either had bad plastic surgery or way too much Botox (or both). This is a movie made for women - who else is going to see it? So why is this weird, emaciated and excessively youthful brand of American beauty so prominently on display? If a movie made for me - a woman in my 40s who cares not one whit about how young and thin everyone should be - is suffused with this silliness, what hope is there for any return to a sane and realistic portrayal of women?

Oceans 13

Not a bad movie. Not as fresh and charming as the original, but I laughed quite a bit and enjoyed it for the most part. However, I have a major objection to the way that Ellen Barkin was portrayed. Her character is smart and hard-working and of course beautiful, as is she. But towards the end of the movie she's seduced by Matt Damon's character, though he's inexplicably disguised with slicked back hair and a large, hooked nose. The entire scene is played for laughs - Damon's character is using a love potion called The Gilroy to overwhelm Barkin's character with lust. What I don't understand is why they decided to go this way. Both Barkin and Damon are gorgeous and sexy, and a genuine seduction scene between them would have been smokin' hot. Instead Barkin acts drunk and Damon acts inept, and it's all rather insulting and painful to watch. And to take this amazing woman, who's been a force in cinema for 3 decades, and make her the butt of a really juvenile joke, well, it dimishes the whole enterprise. Shame on them.

Prime

This was a really great movie in many ways, though the title is stupid and misleading. Meryl Streep and Uma Thurman are wonderful, and the male lead is yummy and a good actor - he holds his own with these two major female talents. It was better than I expected, since the previews made it look like a dopey comedy, but in reality it's quite a heartfelt study of love and family relationships (my favorite kind of movie). But ultimately, it wasn't a very satisfying film experience. For one thing, you get all caught up in this couple and their ups and downs, and then the ending is rather flat. And the filmmakers don't seem to really know what they want to say about love, despite it being the topic of the entire film. I wish they had gotten themselves sorted out, but in the end, I'm glad I saw their movie.

Note on Bryan Greenberg: I hope he finds some good projects in the future. He was showcased in a midseason TV series on ABC called October Road, which I watched an episode or two of, but couldn't get into. I may give it another try, however, since it's been picked up for the fall, and now I have new motivation, being utterly in love with this lovely jailbait actor (he's really 30 y.o., but still too young to be an object of lust for a middle-age broad like me).