Five things I loved: Silver Linings Playbook

I went to see this on Sunday night with a couple of my ladyfriends - yep, one word, I'm making that call - and it was one of those rare occasions where a movie lived up to my expectations. I try not to buy into hype about movies - the only thing about the Oscars that interests me is the dresses - but it's been pretty hard to ignore all the fuss about Silver Linings Playbook. Thankfully, I was not disappointed. Here are the reasons why:

1. Bradley Cooper doesn't look quite so much like a dinosaur anymore.

I understand that many, many ladies out there find B. Coops one sexy fellow. He was even declared People Magazine's sexiest man of the year recently (apparently this caused small groups of Ryan Gosling fans to protest...like, hold literal protests), but I've just never been on that particular band wagon. One of my friends commented a while ago that he reminds her of a velociraptor, and since that moment whenever I saw him in anything, that was all I could think about. The resemblance is striking, no?

Also, I think the first movie I ever saw him in was that terrible He's Just Not That Into You movie and it was not really a good introduction. However, good news! As he ages, he looks less a velociraptor. Hence, I did not spend most of the film thinking about Jurassic Park.

See? Totally not prehistoric.

 2. Happy, but sad, but happy.

If you're not familiar with the storyline of Silver Linings Playbook, I'll give you a very brief rundown. Pat (B.Coops) has just finished an 8 month court ordered stint in a mental health facility, after beating up his wife's lover and being diagnosed as bipolar. He returns to his parents' house to try to rebuild his life and his marriage and meets Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence), a young widow with her own set of problems, and things get complicated/funny/interesting. 

The film deals with some pretty heavy subject matter, but it's all addressed with just the right tone, at the right time. It wasn't always funny, but at points the whole cinema was cracking up. It wasn't always bittersweet, but there was more than one moment when I felt teary. It was the perfect level of emotional manipulation. And really, isn't that life? Sometimes funny, sometimes sad. Don't those two emotions go together like coffee and chocolate anyway?

3. Dance magic dance.

I am a sucker for a dance scene in a movie. SURPRISE! You would never have guessed, right? I'm not going to say too much because I don't want to spoil it for you, but the dance scene in this movie is pretty amazing. It's going to knock your socks off. As it should - both the actors and the characters worked very hard towards this goal.

4. Jennifer Lawrence. 

I just think she's the best. I've said it before, and I'm pretty sure I'll say it again. It helps that every time I see or read an interview with her she comes across as completely genuine and hilarious. And frankly, anyone who says that their holiday to Belize was "unbelizeable" is my kind of person. For a pretty good ode to Jen, check out this article on HelloGiggles.

Also, I think she's a stone fox and she looks really good with dark hair. Just putting that out there.

5. We are all stardust

There's a scene in the Ethan Hawke/Julie Delpy movie Before Sunrise, where Julie Delpy gets her palm read by a lady in a charming little town square somewhere in Vienna. As the palm reader walks away she reminds them both that we are all made from stardust. Silver Linings Playbook made me think of that scene because it's so accepting of every character's imperfections - not just accepting, because that can be a really passive word - it loved each character for exactly who they were. If you believe the palm reader, we are all made of stardust, all of us are special and none of us are perfect. 

xx

5 Things I Loved: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

I had an idea for a new kind of post yesterday, for those short and sharp things we want to share without writing a full review. It might not be the most creative or snazzy title, but I'm going with "5 Things I Loved" posts for now.

I had the idea yesterday because that was when I went to see The Perks of Being a Wallflower at the movies, and I'm 99% sure that this was my favourite film of 2012. Here are the reasons why:

1. Just the right amount of faithfulness to the book.

Perks is directed by Stephen Chbosky, who happens to be the author of the novel and who also wrote the screenplay. This kind of thing doesn't happen often enough in Hollywood cinematizations (not a word, but I'm going with it) in my opinion. I can't really explain it as well as I'd like to, but the film remained absolutely faithful to the book, while acknowledging that a film is a film, and a book is a book. Different ways of telling a story use different techniques to tell it. That's okay.

2. Spot on casting.

I can't remember the last time I saw a movie that was as well cast as this one. Not once did I think that Hermione Granger had been transported from Hogwarts to early 90s America. Emma Watson was amazing as Sam. Logan Lerman, who plays main character Charlie, made my heart physically hurt. Ezra Miller was an absolute delight as Patrick, the friend who sees everything about everyone, and loves them more for it rather than less. All the actors were all so honest and true, I couldn't fault them.

Image courtesy of vanityfair.com

3. Very big actors took very small parts.

I always think that you can tell when a movie is going to be good when there are amazing actors in very small parts. Paul Rudd plays the English teacher, and Joan Cusack has a tiny role but still manages to bring her wonderful heart and distinctive voice (literally and figuratively) to it. I like to imagine they had heated conversations with their agents about taking these roles in which the actors said things like "I don't care! I'll do it for free! JUST GET ME IN THE DAMN MOVIE."

Sidenote: when is John Cusack going to do something good again? I feel like it's time that happened.

4. It is set in a specific time period, without being gimmicky.

The story takes place in Pittsburgh in the early 90s, but that wasn't a thing in the movie, you know? It wasn't like being hit over the head with a baseball bat while someone yells at you "WE'RE IN THE NINETIES. CAN'T YOU TELL? LOOK AT ALL THE FLANNEL AND HALF-HEARTED HAIR!!"

5. Charlie's family

All families have their own levels of dysfunction. It's just a fact of life. And while some very good books and excellent films have been made about this very issue, it doesn't have to be a theme in storytelling all the time, you know? Plenty of families still love each other, and care for and support one another, which is what happened in Perks. I particularly liked the way Charlie's siblings cared so much about him, and he for them. Special mention goes to the actress playing Charlie's sister, Nina Dobrev, who works her butt off on The Vampire Diaries and is a much better actress than I have a feeling people give her credit for. (Also, I almost just wrote The Campire Diaries - unintentional Freudian pun slip!)

Now, I don't often get gushy about stuff, so I think I'll stop now before I grow a new personality. But just go see it okay? And remember, it doesn't matter if you see the movie first and read the book second. Seriously. So read it too, okay?

xo