Movie Reviews

Here are three films I've viewed recently:

1. Intermission is an Irish film kind of like Love Actually or Snatch (although after I just wrote that I realized that those two films have nothing in common except for the fact that the plot follows around several characters who pop in and out of each others' lives). It's sort of a comedy crime film with a bit of sex and love thrown in the mix, and all very Irish. You might want to leave the closed captioning on so you don't miss any of the jokes. Colin Farrell plays a scumbag, and quite adeptly at that. I'm not a big fan of him, but this role seems to suit him well, maybe even a little too well. The lead is played by Cillian Murphy, who's all eyes and cheekbones and likeable in this role. I liked the movie- it has a bit of a low-budget feel to it, but it's silly and entertaining.
   
2. The 40 Year Old Virgin. This movie is a comedy about a 40 year old virgin (duh) whose co-workers discover his secret make it a pet project to help him do the deed. Steve Carrell is perfect as the lead- he's believable, and he's a geek, and not as pathetic as I expected his character to be portrayed. The movie is definitely funny with some killer lines, like during the scene when they discover that he's a virgin after he says that a woman's breast feels like a bag of sand. Paul Rudd and company are hilarious as the pals. My main criticism of the movie is that it's about 20 minutes too long. There's no reason for a goofy comedy to last more than an hour and 45 minutes, tops.
   
3. Brokeback Mountain a.k.a The Gay Cowboy Movie. I'm sure you all have heard a lot about this movie by now, but here's my take. I really liked it. It's very sad, and it's a love story more than anything else, but the reason why I really enjoyed it is that it's a western and I love westerns. Love them. Books especially, like anything by Cormac McCarthy or The Big Sky. Another favorite author of mine is Larry McMurtry, who wrote Lonesome Dove, and was a screenwriter and the executive producer of Brokeback Mountain. The scenery was amazing and the story was captivating. The beginning of the movie feels tense, because everyone in the audience knows what's going to happen and just sits there wondering when it's going to happen. Then it does, suddenly, and the movie takes off. All of the actors were excellent, especially Heath Ledger (definitely an Oscar-caliber performance) and Michelle Williams, who portrays his suspicious wife. Anne Hathaway is in it, too, but I think her main function is to show her boobs, giving straight guys a reason/excuse to see the movie.