Hope Springs a subtle reminder of the need to grow together
Hope Springs – 2012
Director David Frankel
Starring Meryl Streep, Tommy Lee Jones, Steve Carrell, Jean Smart, Mimi Rogers, Elisabeth Shue, Ben Rappaport, Marin Ireland, Becky Ann Baker
Screenplay Vanessa Taylor
I always thought that separate beds in a marriage was a fiction of television. Of course Ozzie and Harriet could not be seen in the sack together. It was the 1950′s. Hope Springs shows a couple Kay and Arnold Soames (Streep and Jones) who have taken this concept further. They sleep in completely separate bedrooms. How long this has been is not clear. They are polite to each other, more by habit than anything. It’s a married life on pause.
The situation seems to work well for Arnold. It is low commitment and max benefit. He has a live in maid. Kay is another story. There is no shortage of meaning when she explains to their kids that their 31 year anniversary is an “off-year.”
The purchase of a book by author Dr. Bernie Feld (Carrell) leads Kay to buy a session retreat of intense marriage counseling with Feld in Maine. For the ever nervously smiling Kay, this is a big step. For Arnold, this is a minor crisis. The money is already spent and Kay is not changing her mind. The only thing worse than admitting there is a problem is wasting money.
The first session ends predictably and the second leads to talk about their sleeping situation. The doctor prescribes…hugs. Arnold feels like he is being forced, like a “trained monkey.” Kay informs him that he is a bully and takes off. Wheels start turning…”Everybody Plays the Fool” plays in the background. Slowly, like an iceberg, feelings begin to surface. There is so much under the serene waters.
There could not have been a better choice for the Soames than Streep and Jones. For Streep, the role is a unique one. Sensitive and silently expressive, she is a marm peeking out from behind glasses. She is overly considerate of her husband. Jones routine is just a touch away from his normal, grouchy self. He is not really a mean guy, but he inadvertently lacks consideration, but really only because he’s been allowed to slack off.
It’s easy to identify with bits of their dilemma. Every marriage has gaps created when one or the other decides that there are certain things they might like are not worth the fight that night, the next day or perhaps ever. There are times when I realized I missed an opportunity to show my wife what she means to me and I think, “Well, there’s next time.” It does not feel like taking one for granted in the moment.
Carrell is as effective as I have seen him in a straight dramatic role. His stare is less desperate and more knowing (and caring, as always). He is calm and patient for things to draw their own conclusion. Any more of a push from his direction could have thrown the story off course. He is a mirror with an undeniable reflection.
“He is everything. But I am really alone.”
There is comfort and pain in familiarity. There is anxiety in the potential for new pain in change. The toughest thing is to move in one direction or the other.
These moves are somewhat of a mixed bag. There is the requisite buying of the bananas and the self-help books that come across as rote. Then there is an exquisite scene of Streep intently reading the book and taking a small bite from the banana and thinking nothing of it. This something that most other actors would have messed up, but Streep makes it wonderfully human.
One could have done without the multiple scenes referencing phallic pleasures. It is an important thing, to be sure, but it as not as important for me to see Tommy Lee Jones in the throes of anything. Suffice to say, it is a necessary and important message to show how important it is to be on the floor of a good hotel room, as compared to the bed of the EconoLodge. Even then, sometimes biology steps in between fantasy and reality.
The film’s biggest mis-step happens here. Kay’s reaction to a bump in the road seems forced, even if it stays within the character of one who has let herself be pushed out of the bedroom. Granted, it’s not something that is easy to discuss, even in the best terms, walking without discussing it seems a little overboard. Without this, though, there would be no false crisis and, hence, no full version of an Anne Lennox song. Thank God there was no run to the airport.
The direction is spot on and the weak spots in the script are overcome by the simply magnificent acting. This movie would have been an impenetrable paper bag with lesser talent.
The movie was more serious than commercials implied. There were almost no laughs. There are more than a few smiles by the time credits roll. It’s all about less golf and better gifts that are not for the house. And of course, it has to end with Van Morrison. At least it was a happy song.
(**** out of *****)
The Iron Lady: If only the movie could have matched the acting or its subject
The Iron Lady – 2011
Directed by Phillida Lloyd
Starring Meryl Streep, Jim Broadbent, Anthony Head, Richard E. Grant, Olivia Coleman
Screenplay by Abi Morgan
Meryl Streep is one of the world’s greatest actors. She has the skill to so immerse herself into her character, it is touching to your very core. I feel honored to be witnessing her skill through much of The Iron Lady, even if the questionable approach had me wondering if they were trying to impress, or depress. The greatness in her performance is almost lost in the delivery, which bounces from time to time in her life, forward and backward, from a starting point of the late Prime Minister’s bout with dementia. It could be seen as an unconventional method if it weren’t just so plain sad.
The director, Lloyd, takes about as far an angle away from her first effort, Mamma Mia, as one could for a followup. Where that film excelled in its sheer joy of the lightness of the material and the exceptionally pop-perfect soundtrack, this one is muddled, between gloom and triumph. What does one want us to think about a person’s triumphs, when she begins blazing her trail by ignoring the pleas of her children who run along side her car, begging her not to go? To show the last days of one of the most accomplished leaders, it is unique to see her caught between grief and joy for what she may or may not have given to her family. It seems somewhat unbecoming, however, when one of the film’s major characters (Broadbent’s Denis) is an apparition of the mind with dialogue that is purely of the filmmaker’s creation. Sure, she had visions, but I am not sure I trust anyone but her to know what the visions were.
Other than the remarkable Ms. Streep and the delightfully complete performance by Jim Broadbent, there are literally no other fully fleshed characters in the entire film. There are people who do stuff that is nice, and people who do stuff that is not so nice. There is no real sense of time or place. Just musings of this time or that time, happiness, regret, stubbornness and surrender. In the end, I have precious little information gained from viewing this story about Thatcher. There is no compelling urge to believe any of it.
All of this should not detract from the performance. Streep is truly without peer in this film. If you’ve been on the fence about her for these years like I have, now is the time to jump in and just enjoy her, before it’s too late.
(*** out of *****)
I Don’t Have A Vote: Cool Papa E Picks The 84th Oscars
2012 Academy Awards
Please don’t let this be the year that the gimmicky French film wins. I would prefer that the real masterpiece that took place in Paris, France take home the gold. The rush to crown The Artist as Best Picture feels a little like the time we anointed Brokeback Mountain the movie of our times. If it actually wins, then it will feel like when Out of Africa beat out The Color Purple: only one of those films has been watched since 1985.
The disappointments this year are in the omission of the last Harry Potter film, along with Take Shelter from the nominees list for Best Picture. We easily could have done without War Horse, Moneyball and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close in this category. This just shows the kind of clout Speilberg, Pitt and Hanks have that they get these as gimmes.
As a refresher from last year’s post, if a category is not covered here, it’s because I have not seen most of the films in that group, and, obviously, don’t care about the category.
Best Picture
The Artist, The Descendants, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, Hugo, Midnight in Paris, The Help, Moneyball, War Horse, The Tree of Life
My pick: Out of this group, Hugo is the clear class of the bunch. There are other good films here, The Help, The Descendants and The Tree of Life among them. None of those, though, were better than Take Shelter. Only Hugo achieves this, and it is the best 3D film ever.
Who will win: If The Artist wins, something is seriously wrong with Hollywood, because no one will be watching this film in a year. For the self-congratulatory voters, however, this is the shiny object in their periphery. Better still, it is a shiny object that they feel represents “tradition.” It should be a dead heat between Hugo and The Help. My money is on The Artist, though. Something is seriously wrong with Hollywood.
Best Actor
Demian Bichir, A Better Life
George Clooney, The Descendants
Jean Dujardin, The Artist
Gary Oldman, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Brad Pitt, Moneyball
My pick: Bashir gave a clinic in A Better Life. Brad Pitt actually did better work this year in Tree of Life, but that was a supporting role, so the performance was ignored. Clooney playing slightly against type is always fun. The older he gets, the more ways he finds to go against type. Soon, he will have no “type.”
Who will win: If The Artist wins best picture, it may be enough to divorce the voters from the idea of giving it to the French guy, who spoke not a word. I think the Academy likes Clooney as much as I do.
Best Actress
Glenn Close, Albert Nobbs
Viola Davis, The Help
Rooney Mara, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Meryl Streep, The Iron Lady
Michelle Williams, My Week With Marilyn
My pick: Mara’s movie, while great, is derivative. I still think of Noomi Rapace. She should have been nominated for her work first. Streep is great, but the Iron Lady is not enough to get the gold. I haven’t liked Close much since Cookie’s Fortune showed me how unskilled she is when unrestrained. I haven’t seen Williams as Marilyn. If ever there was a clear standout, Davis should win for showing us how to be humble, graceful and a giant of a human being.
Who will win: Davis, with no question. Streep is old reliable and could surprise. From what I have been told, Mara does not interview well. That and a violent movie about rape should keep her from the gold this time.
Best Supporting Actor
Kenneth Branagh, My Week With Marilyn
Jonah Hill, Moneyball
Nick Nolte, Warrior
Christopher Plummer, Beginners
Max Von Sydow, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
My pick: Nick Nolte’s performance in Warrior was incredibly poetic. His skill has only increased with age. Hill was fun in his fictional version of Paul DePodesta, and he really worked Sorkin’s dialogue. I have to go with Nolte here. I have to say, though, it was a true shame that Rickman was not nominated for his role of Snape. He would have taken the Oscar, if so.
Who will win: The shiny object in this category is the old gay guy dying of cancer who was faithful until his wife died. Plummer is a great actor of many years. This is his Sean Connery moment, albeit a slightly pinker version. I would rather have given it to him for Star Trek VI, but hey, I am a different breed of cat.
Best Supporting Actress
Berenice Bejo, The Artist
Jessica Chastain, The Help
Melissa McCarthy, Bridesmaids
Janet McTeer, Albert Nobbs
Octavia Spencer, The Help
My pick: Chastain is a wonderful actress who had many excellent roles this year. 3 of these, The Help, Tree of Life, and especially Take Shelter deserved nominations (the latter for Best Actress), but she lands in the one spot she can’t win. Octavia Spencer is perhaps the best nominated performance of this year’s awards. She made a lasting impression with The Help. McCarthy was good, but undercut by fat chick clichés in Bridesmaids.
Who will win: I think that Spencer made the same impression on the voters that she made with me.
Best Director
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Terrence Malick, The Tree of Life
Alexander Payne, The Descendants
Martin Scorsese, Hugo
My pick: Payne and Malick had excellent movies, but Scorsese’s Hugo is a masterpiece. This movie is right up there with Goodfellas, Raging Bull, Aviator and Taxi Driver as the best in his career. Yeah, I know I did not include The Departed. It’s good, but not on the level with his best. Remember, Oscar is a shiny object. The most impressive feat of the film, though, is Scorcese’s ability to weave a wonderful tale and while using unobtrusive 3D effects that actually help the story seem all the more real.
Who will win: It looks like The Artist’s director will take this one. The only one that stands a chance is Scorsese. Not a good one, though.
Best Original Screenplay
Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris
JC Chandor, Margin Call
Asghar Farhadi, A Separation
Michel Hazanavicius, The Artist
Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo, Bridesmaids
My pick: Out of this group, I have to go with Midnight in Paris. Take Shelter should have been nominated and deserves the award, too. Margin Call was nothing more than a depressing recap. Bridesmaids was good, but the fat clichés knock it out for me.
Who will win: The Academy is big on Woody Allen. He thinks like they do.
Best Adapted Screenplay
Alexander Payne, Nat Faxton, Jim Rash, The Descendants
John Logan, Hugo
George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon, The Ides of March
Aaron Sorkin, Steven Zaillian, Moneyball
Bridget O’Connor, Peter Straughn, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
My pick: No contest. As good as The Descendants is, Hugo is the best story of the nominations and it was written exquisitely. The story is the history of movies itself. There can be no better story than this for a movie lover.
Who will win: Odds have The Descendants. I have to go with Hugo though. What better way for Hollywood to celebrate itself than by this story?
Best Animated Feature
A Cat In Paris
Chico & Rita
Kung Fu Panda 2
Puss in Boots
Rango
My pick: No question here. Kung Fu Panda 2. The story was a true continuation of the journey. Remarkable and one of the 4 best animated features ever. The great thing here is that Pixar was shut out after putting out that derivative pile of crap, Cars 2. It’s only because I love everything else that Pixar has done (except Cars) that I celebrate this. They always do better, and they deserved the shut out.
Who will win: Rango is probably going to take this. It looked great, to be sure. The story was about as original as Avatar, though.
Original Score
The Adventures of Tintin, John Williams
The Artist, Ludovic Bource
Hugo, Howard Shore
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Alberto Iglesias
War Horse, John Williams
My pick: Howard Shore did a very skilful job combining the feelings and the tension with Hugo. The Artist was a hodgepodge of stolen riffs from other movies. They call it an homage, but that did not fare any better than Moulin Rouge for me.
Who will win: The music for the silent film will probably win the day.
Best Original Song
“Man or Muppet,” The Muppets; Music and Lyric by Bret McKenzie
“Real in Rio,” Rio; Music by Sergio Mendes and Carlinhos Brown, Lyric by Siedah Garrett
My pick: Easy. McKenzie’s faux rock ballad perfectly encapsulated the glory of all things Muppet. Ironically, that was not even as good as Life’s a Happy Song from the same movie. Real in Rio is a nice song, but that’s about it.
Who will win: Like I said. Easy.
Best Achievement in Art Direction
The Artist
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
Midnight in Paris
War Horse
My pick: Before I saw Hugo, this award would have gone to the last Harry Potter. My life is now infused with the images from Scorsese’s masterpiece.
Who will win: Hugo should win, but The Artist could creep in.
Best Achievement in Cinematography
The Artist
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
The Tree of Life
War Horse
My pick: Malick’s work was immaculate. His nonsequiturs are amazingly filmed as they are puzzling. I love Fincher camera work and The Artist sure does look good. Nothing, however, holds a camera to Scorsese’s work in Hugo.
Who will win: This is likely the one place that they reward Malick’s wonderful film. Hugo or The Artist could surprise though.
Best Achievement in Costume Design
Anonymous
The Artist
Hugo
Jane Eyre
W.E.
My pick: This is a contest between Hugo and The Artist. Hugo’s costumes encompass all that The Artist’s presented, while bringing into it so much more. Hugo.
Who will win: This could go either way, but I am guessing that they go with The Artist.
Best Documentary Feature
Hell and Back Again
If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pina
Undefeated
My pick: Hell and Back Again. Semper Fi.
Who will win: Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory has traction.
Best Achievement in Film Editing
The Artist
The Descendants
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
My pick: There are no wasted shot’s with Thelma Schoonmaker. Hugo.
Who will win: If the tide is with them, and I think it may well be, The Artist, will probably win. If by some miracle, they judge on merit, Hugo will take it.
Best Achievement in Makeup
Albert Nobbs
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
The Iron Lady
My pick: Potter.
Who will win: Potter.
Best Achievement in Sound Editing
Drive
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
My pick: Hugo
Who will win: Hugo
Best Achievement in Sound Mixing
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo
Hugo
Moneyball
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
War Horse
My pick: Hugo
Who will win: Hugo
Best Achievement in Visual Effects
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
Hugo
Real Steel
Rise of the Planet of the Apes
Transformers: Dark of the Moon
My pick: Hugo should win this. Apes was an excellent effort, but Scorsese’s work was conventional and groundbreaking simultaneously.
Who will win: Unless there is a Hugo landslide, Rise of the Planet of the Apes should win.
