Smart People

Smart People makes me think I'm either not smart enough, or at least not eloquent enough, or these "smart people", are too literate, but maybe not "smart enough".

Dennis Quaid is a college professor that seems to be carrying a lot of burden on his shoulders maybe over the death of his wife, which doesn't seem that important on the plot-line but kind of defines the character. What also defines this character is a high level of literacy that instead of making him smarter, I think it just takes him far away from the society he lives in and disconnects him altogether.

Ellen Page (Juno - Steal it), plays the daughter-turned-housewife that is out to look for her father and takes him literally as his role model, therefore having a hard time coping with reality, ordinary people an. Sarah Jessica Parker (Sex and the City), plays the resented, previously rejected physician, but she's a smart person herself so she might deal with stuff easier than others.

The nice balancing act/comic relief is provided by Thomas Haden Church (Sideways - Buy it), who plays Dennis Quaid's brother although he's adopted which probably explains why he's not "smart" like the rest of the family but rates higher in interpersonal intelligence.

"Comic relief" though is not cheesy or falls into slapstick, it's just a fair balancing act that doesn't take away from the smart people being focused on.

This movie reminds me how "smart" is really so relative because some people seem to have it all together but don't and some cope with whatever life throws at them, It is entertaining and insightful and quite frankly it exceeded my expectations. My rating...RENT IT!

You might prefer this movie if: You feel like you're too smart, you don't feel smart enough, you're wondering what to do with an old wardrobe, you're in love with Ellen Page, you're awaiting a publisher's response,

The Orphanage (El Orfanato)

Do not be misled... this movie is not Guillermo del Toro's , he endorses it, which is good and the quality is there, but after you've seen his work, you get to expect more and it turns out to be a production of his, though not directed by him. Still it reminesces a little of a late 90's movie of his named El Espinazo del Diablo (rent it), in that it involves orphans and ghosts. 

It is not your main fare horror movie, It diverges a bit from mainstream, tapping a little more into psychological thriller. A lady loses her kid in this new big mansion, and out of desire, we can think, she keeps feeling that the kid's still around and that he's trying to reconnect. It is highly entertaining and it reaches a fairly credible denouement, (considering of course, it's a ghost movie).  It plays with disturbing imagery without falling into the ludicrous.

I will rate this one with a Rent it, also, check my new ratings guideline, I've simplified it, as I've found I tend to chose mainly movies I will like, there's no need to have a lot of options for movies I really don't recommend (although I will recommend at least half of the movies, but on different levels though).

The Band's Visit

Cute little movie about an Egyptian Band invited to play at a ceremony in Israel.
Cute, that is, until it becomes a little slow because in a sense, not much happens. It starts strong and funny and slides downward into a slight comedy-drama about loneliness and sharing. As for the Jewish-Muslim cultural exchange, there is not much there to account for, which would have given better sense to my intention of watching this kind of movie.

On the other hand, it is also a reminder that we do not need to exploit differences or certain ethnical aspects to see that people around the world, for all the differences they claim between them and all the reasons they can think of to be constantly in conflict or war, are essentially the same at heart and can share the same interests and be hospitable with one another.

Some plot points are not quite resolved or I completely missed their place in this movie but overall, The Band's Visit is refreshing, and for its slow tempo, which we're not that used to in the US, it is very watchable since it doesn't run for long either.

I'm rating this first movie with a Watch it. Remember my ratings are Steal it, Buy it, Rent it, Watch it, Stay, Avoid, and Rip-my-eyes-out.

I'm also ranking it on a movie list so since this is the first one on the list it's place is 1/1, after I review another movie, it could be 1/2 (top of the list) or 2/2 (bottom of the list)

You might like it if you are a: Struggling Musician, Widower, Fan of Omar Shariff, Lonely Person, Jewish, Muslim, Arab, In search of dating/hooking-up techniques, If you like Men in Uniforms, if you miss Roller Skating.

RATINGS GUIDELINE

Well, first of all I want to thank Claudia for inviting me to Blog... It is actually my first interaction on this media.

RANDOM WEEKLY MOVIE REVIEWS OF WHAT'S OUT ON DVD. 
(I don't go to the theaters a lot, I find it cheaper and more convenient to rent from Netflix and Blockbuster)

This blog is for NOT for everyone. If you are too inclined to watch big Hollywood movies, probably you won't find yourself attracted to many of the movies I watch. If you hate any type of cinema you won't be appreciative of different film styles. So, I'll cover a little bit of new video releases and older stuff (not too old though, I've seen a lot of it so I'm starting fresh), I'll try to see some independent films and also some Hollywood stuff, why not, it's just about striking a balance.

To follow this blog you have to follow 2 rules that 'll make it more enjoyable 1) Keep an open mind 2) Do not hold a grudge. Why ? well one of my mottos is "Life's too short to hold a grudge".

I've decided to rate movies not by saying Good or Bad, I really do think that once a movie hits the screen, It has been studied rewritten, edited, edited some more, etc. and so it makes it an appreciable work of art, Sure I'll like some better than others but overall I love movies and some time even a not so good movie is better than so many other things, isn't it?

But to rate movies, even if I like 95% of them I still like to distinguish overall, which ones I like better than others so here are my 6 labels:

1) Steal it.- This movie is so good you shouldn't feel embarassed even to steal it... if asked at a court of law declare yourself guilty and say proudly "Yes your honor I'm guilty of stealing "The Shawshank Redemption" off the $5 dollar bin at Wal-Mart" (Although if you found this movie at $5.00 I think it'd be a pretty good deal). Also, stealing The Shawshank Redemption would probably prepare you well for the years you'll spend there for doing such heinous act.

2)Buy it.- I'm not particularly big on buying movies, I figure if I can rent them, I'll watch them and probably won't need to watch them for the next 5 to 10 years (unless I'm in jail of course), so there are some really good movies that are probably worth your $5 or $10 dollars... do not steal these please, your pride would be difficult to understand.

3) Rent it.- I guess I'll probably recommend you to do this maybe on half of the movies I watch, so that's a lot, you might start by renting the ones I recommend you to steal.

4) Channel Surf it.- These movies might be worth your time so find but do not go out of your way to get them, i.e, only stay and watch if you happen to run into it. If you're not a big fan of movies this is the cut-off line so proceed at your own risk.

5) Rip-my-eyes-out.- Ouch (I will not lend you my fingers), you're better off bowling, doing yoga, attending the opera or learning macrame, by all means, do not subject yourself to this type of torture. 

Hopefully I won't find anything in this last category though, because once this last step is taken, unfortunately I won't be able to enjoy the rest of the wonderful scope that cinema always brings.