Weekend movies

I did a lot of cooking this weekend, so I got to watch some great videos:

Blood & Chocolate is a cross between Twilight and Underworld.  It's werewolves, not vampires, and the mythical creature is Vivian (as opposed to Edward).  It's also based on a book (like Twilight), but the movie deviates substantially from the book, especially at the end.  I saw it mostly for Hugh Dancy (who plays the Bella role) and I thought he was delicious, but I was especially impressed with the female lead, Agnes Bruckner, who is terrific (she's been in some stuff - she has that kind of face that you recognize, but can't quite place).  Apparently the movie was a big flop, but I don't know why - I thought it was romantic and had enough action, but not too much gore  Seems like a winning formula, but it didn't find an audience.  I told all my friends about it.

Winter's Bone was very good.  It made me think of Frozen River, in the best possible way - flawed but determined female lead solves problems and overcomes obstacles in gritty mileau, with sort of happy ending.  If Jennifer Lawrence doesn't get an Oscar nom, she will have been robbed!  Really worthwhile and satisfying movie.

Phoebe in Wonderland was disappointing.  And interesting premise and a terrific cast, but the story was presented in an uneven and ultimately sort of frustrating way . . . the mother insists that her daughter is just "imaginative," but she's clearly suffering from serious mental problems (OCD and some other stuff); the psychiatrist, whose advice the mother rejects, proves to ultimately be right, but he never reappears, and the supportive drama teacher disappears part way through and never returns, which seems odd and inexplicable (she delivers the key line in the movie, about how "normal" people are "awful," and then she exits, stage left).  I especially found the model of parenting to be deeply flawed and a little scary - the parents tolerate terrible behavior from their daughter, and the father even apologizes the one time he speaks sharply to her.  There doesn't seem to be any acknowledgement that her troubled behavior indicates that she needs help - the teachers and the principal who criticize the child are presented as wrong, stupid, insensitive, and almost evil. I found it rather muddled and quite disturbing.  The way Alice in Wonderland (the story, characters, and play) is used is, well, wonderful, and makes the movie worth watching (also for excellent performances), but it's not a particularly satisfying movie.

I finally got out to see Love and Other Drugs, which was good, but not great (probably not worth paying my sitter $30).  I liked the first half or so, and I appreciated their attempts to include a little criticism of the drug industry, but ultimately it was a rather standard romance, and the freshness of the first half faded into a pat and predictable ending.  And, as I heard, the off-color humor is off-putting - the slovenly younger brother was very over-utilized and I could have lived my whole life without seeing his naked rear humping a (totally gorgeous) woman at a party.  Overall, I think the movie needed better editing, and that might have helped a lot.  The friend I went with liked it more than I did.  I must admit, I agree with Suzanne, who said it's worth it just for Jake.  Totally true.  (Anne Hathaway is wonderful too, but JG is just yummy - he doesn't play romantic leads very often, so it's a treat to see him in full smolder mode.)