Movie #24........................."Recount"

I rated it a 5.
Average rating: 3.692

Recount
(2008) NR
This made-for-TV, Emmy-winning film chronicles the extraordinary behind-the-scenes drama that unfolded in the weeks following the highly controversial 2000 election -- a presidential race that further split an already divided America. With the country's leadership hanging in the balance after the closest vote in history, the battle between George W. Bush and Al Gore would come down a hotly contested vote count in Florida. Kevin Spacey and Laura Dern (in a Golden Globe-winning role) star.





Movie #24 "Recount", a well- acted, taut drama concerning election day 2000 through the recount ending we know already, but the film is still able to build suspense, make you laugh/ cry/think about what IF all the votes were ever counted, a situtation so frustrating , that as I watched the pan of the boxed ballots in storage toward the end of the film, I thought: I'm retired. I could hand recount each one.

Movie #23........................."The Great New Wonderful"

You rated this movie: 3.0

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The Great New Wonderful(2006) R

New York City a year after the 9/11 tragedy is the setting for Danny Leiner's drama portraying five stories of vastly different lives in the same uncertain surroundings. A psychologist (Tony Shalhoub) and an ordinary yet angry man; two pastry purveyors (Maggie Gyllenhaal and Edie Falco); a married couple; two immigrant friends; and an older woman (Olympia Dukakis) set in her ways -- they all try to rebuild their lives as the city does as well.

Movie #23 "the great new wonderful " is a 9/11 reaction by people not DIRECTLY affected by the tragedy but who find it difficult to move on in life. It's in the "crash" format with 6 people (played by competent actors like Maggie gyllenhall/Tony shaloub/etc) are each introduced and then the film cross edits from one to the other, sometimes frantically to keep us involved. It's okay but I would have wanted more of a tie in to each of he people or to 9/11. Kind of fizzles out but I do appreciate the suggestion that we will be affected by 9/11 in ways we don't even know in the present and future.

Movie #22........................."I Loved You So Long"

Movie #22 "I Loved You So Long" a solid, well executed French film about a woman in prison for 15 years coming back into her sister's life & the outside world. No one talks about the "elephant in the room," why she did the murder, at least TO her but everyone, including the audience, wants to know. A slambang confrontation at the end of the film but weak denouement. Bravo!



Average rating: 3.737

I've Loved You So Long
Il y a longtemps que je t'aime
(2008) PG-13
After more than a decade apart, estranged sisters Juliette (Kristin Scott Thomas) and Lea (Elsa Zylberstein) try to rebuild their fractured relationship. But the task is hardly easy, considering Juliette's past: She's been in jail for 15 years -- for killing someone. As she settles into small-town life with Lea's family, the locals can't help but talk. Writer-director Philippe Claudel's feature film debut garnered him a Golden Globe nomination.

Movie#21........................."Deliver Us From Evil"

Movie #21 "Deliver Us From Evil" is a very disturbing Oscar-nominated documentary about the Catholic Church (see details below). The sexual abuse comes across as an everyday occurrence -- what an indictment. And the spiritual abuse pervades the entire piece. Where did it go wrong and how can it ever be fixed are the questions director Berg asks using just this one pedophile/rapist Father O'Grady. Very disturbing

You rated this movie: 4.0

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Deliver Us from Evil(2006) NR

This unsettling Oscar-nominated documentary from filmmaker Amy Berg investigates the life of 30-year pedophile Father Oliver O'Grady and exposes the corruption inside the Catholic Church that allowed him to abuse countless children. Victims' stories and a disturbing interview with O'Grady offer a view into the troubled mind of the spiritual leader who moved from parish to parish gaining trust ... all the while betraying so many.

Movie #20........................."Puccini for Beginners"

Movie#20 "Puccini for Beginners" ---even though it tries too hard sometimes to be natural, it has a lot to like ---- lots of females worked on it (including editor, even a gaffer/ "best boy"), it's quirky, has good sense of humor, uses sex-in-the-city/Woody Allen breakouts of people on park benches who make comments, it's a confusing look at confusion in loving relationships, and has interesting cast of character

Average rating: 3.106 I gave it a 4

Puccini for Beginners
(2006) NR
In this love-crazed comedy, commitment-phobic lesbian Allegra (Elizabeth Reaser) is recovering from a breakup with her girlfriend when she starts to fall for a member of the opposite sex -- and now she's questioning her sexuality and her sanity. Philip (Justin Kirk) is the tidy professor who's romancing the ambivalent Allegra while she pursues Grace (Gretchen Mol), a straight woman who's recently become single.

Movie #19........................."Nine Lives"

Movie #19 "Nine Lives" -- 9 portraits of females in failed relationships made a miss with me. All the actresses (Spacek, Fanning, Close, Baker, Hunter, etc.) are interesting to watch in a theatrical piece, but didn't come together at all for me. Disliked script -- too much unfinished, not enough said as a whole. don't recommend

My rating: 2


(2005) R
This series of revealing vignettes from writer-director Rodrigo Garcia (Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her) peers into the private lives of nine women who are each pointed toward a different destiny. The all-star ensemble cast includes Kathy Baker, Amy Brenneman, Glenn Close, Dakota Fanning, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Holly Hunter, Mary Kay Place, Sissy Spacek and Robin Wright Penn -- with Joe Mantegna and Aidan Quinn providing the testosterone.

Movie#18........................."The Shape of Things"

Movie #18 "Shape of Things" is a Neil Labute movie, a speech/theatre fave, esp. his monologues. Anyway, very naturalistic in dialogue/ themes, and very mean spirited (in my opinion) and this is, indeed, that, but very soul searching. To say too much is to ruin the film, but I will say that Rachel Weisz and Paul Rudd are marvelous in portraying our society's fixation on looks. Worth a look if you like Labute.

You rated this movie: 4.0

The Shape of Things(2003) R

After nerdy English student and museum guard Adam (Paul Rudd) meets attractive art student Evelyn (Rachel Weisz) during one of his shifts, his life takes on an interesting new direction. As Adam's friends notice the changes in him, they begin to wonder what's behind the mysterious transformation; could it be his new girlfriend, or is it something else he's not revealing? Neil LaBute directs this satire about relationships and self-discovery.