Her (2013, dir. Spike Jonze) ****/****

Spike Jonze’s “Her” is a radical glimpse of near-future world where the technological advances are ever-so believable and effortlessly appropriate.  In it, Joaquin Phoenix plays Theodore Twombly, a emotionally crippled 40-something who resorts to making use of a wickedly sophisticated, voice-embodied operating system which acts as a surrogate relationship partner.  This OS, named Samantha, is voiced by Scarlet Johansson in one of the best voice-only performances you will hear this year.  Samantha is in fact, so advanced compared to what we are used to in our present day society that it can solve all kinds of emotional problems such as loneliness, depression and anxiety.  It can give sound advice about financial matters, organizational issues, and relationship problems. 

But, Spike Jonze’s story and direction never leaves us hesitant or reluctant to accept the technological advances in this future world:  everything seems more advanced but never far-fetched or unbelievable.

There are human beings in Theodore’s life too:  there’s Amy (Amy Adams) a friend who provides some degree of support and solace.  There’s potential love in a date with Olivia Wilde.  And there are allusions to a past marriage in various flashbacks with Rooney Mara.  All of these female characters give hints and clues as to the psychological impairments of Theodore and how he has been built up and torn down over the course of his past.  All the exchanges and interactions in this film ring true and are extremely well-written.

But it is Theodore’s relationship with Samantha that is the heart and centre-piece of the film.  It raises thematic issues such as the difference between Artificial intelligence and real life and the breakdown of true human relationships in society plus the tendency to resort to technology as a substitute for real humanity and getting lost or escaping to this world of artifice.

The future world which Jonze creates is a beautiful thing to behold.  The glimpses of technological advances (video games, scanning technology, computers) architecture, even in the simplicity of clothing styles is truly fascinating.

This is a fantastic visionary blend of sci-fi, rom-com, and drama and one of the best films of 2013. 

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013, dir. Martin Scorsese) ****/****

Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street” is a bawdy, obscene, multi-faceted thrill-ride that will engage, amuse, repel, and surprise you throughout its entire 3 hour runtime.  It features Leonardo DiCaprio in the performance of his career and many beautiful, bravura performances from its sprawling, talented cast.  

DiCaprio plays Jordan Belfort a Wall Street stockbroker who rises from penniless, humble origins to wealth and prestige beyond his and our wildest dreams.  He goes from a straight-laced, well-behaved citizen to a corrupt, ego-centric, drug-addled, and sex-hungry villain over the course of his illustrious career on Wall Street all before he crash-lands in a humungous cess-pool of illegal activity and winds up in jail and ratting out his immense collection of “friends” he has garnered along the journey.

This is not an easy picture to watch.  Its graphic depictions of drug-use (Cocaine, Qualuudes, Crack, etc.), sex (hookers), and profanity (the “F” word is uttered close to 500 times), will leave you breathless and disoriented.

Besides DiCaprio, there are tremendous performances from the supporting players.  Jonah Hill nearly steals the show in a performance that is absolutely hilarious in its slovenly, awkward splendor.  He is married to his cousin and one of his scenes involves a shot of him masturbating in public (a prosthetic penis was apparently used).  Matthew McConaghey proves that he is having a great year in another show-stopping role.  There are also great things contributed from Rob Reiner, Kyle Chandler, and Jon Favreau among others. 

The three hours of this film flies by because it is so entertaining but all the debauchery is not for the faint of heart.  The moral vacuity of the characters and story is unsettling and although I liked the film, I cannot admit to liking these characters.  It is only when the FBI starts getting involved that I found myself wishing that these extreme characters would receive their comeuppance and be put in their proper place.  The equilibrium is finally reached by the film’s end but you are left with an uneasy feeling of having witnessed something filthy.  

You may feel like taking a shower after seeing this film.  Its a dirty one.  But its also one of the most entertaining, provocative films you will see this year.  A sprawling, epic one from Mr. Scorsese. 

Love on the Run (1979, dir. Francois Truffaut) ***.5/****

“Love on the Run” is the fifth and final installment in the Antoine Doinel series of films directed by Francois Truffaut and starring Jean-Pierre Leaud.  In it, Doinel is once again struggling to find, maintain, and understand love in all its multifaceted capabilities.

At the start we find him in an affair with a record-store clerk (Dorothee) who is very beautiful but frustratingly stand-offish at times.  His marriage to his wife Christine (Claude Jade) is ending in divorce.  Furthermore, old acquaintances/love-objects (Marie-France Pisier) are reappearing in his life much to his confusion and our amusement. 

This is truly the most experimental of the five Doinel films in that Truffaut resorts to inserting flashbacks from the previous four films to iterate and express lingering memories of the principle character and to highlight the major thematic similarities running through the current film vis-a-vis the past ones.  The flashbacks are appropriate to the filmic structure and envelope the film with effortless verisimilitude.  They comment on the present film’s actions in ways that draw increased understanding and knowledge.

As we will learn, love to Doinel is a vital, energizing force that he can’t live without.  To be loveless is to be dead in Doinel’s terms.  Leaud’s performance, as in all the installments, is perfect in its embodiment of a boy/man who is constantly learning about himself but can never quite quantify his love education in a collective, verbalized idea.

At this stage in the cycle, Doinel is now a published author and his book “Les Salades des Amours” is purchased by his flame from the “Antoine and Colette” film, Colette (Pisier).  She is now a lawyer and after a reunion on a night train they are forced to reassess their present state of affairs and their collective past.

This is a fantastic end to a wonderful series of films.  Its inventiveness with flashbacks is unparalleled because there has been no series of films quite like this.  This is not the best in the Antoine Doinel cycle but it is entertaining and entirely satisfying. 

The Way Way Back (2013, dir. Nat Faxon, Jim Rash) **/****

In the coming-of-age tale “The Way Way Back”, Duncan is an awkward 14-year-old outcast who finds himself at a beach-side summer house with his mother, her boyfriend, and her boyfriend’s adolescent daughter.  Actually, he “finds himself” for real on this summer vacation when he ventures out on a borrowed bicycle and comes across a water-park called “Wizz World”.  It is at this water-park that Duncan meets its owner, Owen (Sam Rockwell), a reckless, comical, charismatic man who befriends Duncan (Liam James) and sets him up with a summer job at “Wizz World”.  It is here that Duncan really starts his journey of self-discovery because Owen guides him in how to be independent and carefree despite his own irresponsible nature.

The Water-Park offers a recluse for Duncan because back at the beach-side summer house, he finds he doesn’t really have anyone to talk to and can’t relate to anyone.  We are made aware of this early on in the car when his mother’s boyfriend, Trent (Steve Carrell) asks him to rate himself on a scale of 1-10.  Duncan ventures a 6 but Trent lets him know that he is actually only a 3.  It is this sort of demeaning, snotty behavior that Duncan finds he must get away from. 

There are potential love interests for Duncan as well.  The neighboring house on the beach is home to a single mom and her cute daughter who is a couple years older than Duncan.  There is some potential there but there are obstacles to overcome, including Duncan’s own self-doubt and lack of confidence.  

The film also stars Toni Colette as Duncan’s mom and Alison Janney as the neighbor.  The performances are good.  The problem I had with this film is that its lead actor, Liam James is too dour and lemon-sucker-faced to carry a film.  Also the emotional pay-off scenes seem forced and contrived.  There seems to be a big build-up to certain scenes which is not exciting and totally unconvincing.  There are some good qualities to this film but it doesn’t add up to a very good movie.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (2013, dir. Ben Stiller) ***.5/****

Ben Stiller directs “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, a funny, effervescent, and charming movie about one man’s journey from a fearful, lonely, play-it-safe day-dreamer to a thrill-seeking, contented and joyful adventurer.  

Walter (Ben Stiller) is the title character who spends his days at a job at Life magazine developing photographs that will appear in the magazine and on its cover.  He spends his off-time alone, trying to leave winks on Eharmony for co-worker Cheryl Melhoff (Kristen Wiig) and constantly zoning out (Walter frequently daydreams about the adventures and interesting things he’s never had the courage to do). 

It is announced at work that Life will be publishing its last print issue and there will be lay-offs.  A free-lance photographer Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn) has sent photographs to the magazine.  One of these photographs is very important and will be featured on the final print edition’s cover.  Walter is in charge of this photograph but he cannot seem to find it anywhere.  Pressure mounts as the submission date looms.  Finally, Walter decides to go against his habitual behavior and travel to Greenland, Iceland and later Afghanistan to try to locate O’Connell and get information on the whereabouts of the elusive photograph.  

This is a great movie and very funny at times.  I loved the performances and the witty screenplay.  It is an inspiring tale of triumph against adversity and pre-established character molds.  It is a truthful movie with moments that resonate with your soul.

I liked Stiller’s direction.  At times he ingeniously inserts meaningful textual messages into the mise-en-scene that are revealing and inspiring.  The “zone-out” sequences of Walter are surprising and exciting.  The movie’s soundtrack is enjoyable as well.

This is one of the better films of 2013 and will make you feel joyful when you witness the various triumphs of the title character.  

The Sapphires (2012, dir. Wayne Blair) ***/****

Wayne Blair’s “The Sapphires” is the story of four young Aboriginal sisters who come together with the help of a talent scout, Dave Lovelace (Chris O’Dowd) to form a soul group in 1968.  They jump on the opportunity to travel to Viet Nam where they entertain the American troupes amidst danger and adventure. 

What we have here is a totally conventional, unoriginal but nevertheless somewhat entertaining true-story from Australia.  It is in the same vein as “The Commitments”, another story of a soul group of youngsters.

There is also critique of Australian society at the time:  in the beginning we learn that certain Aboriginal children who were more fair-skinned than their brethren were taken by force from their families to live with white families in the surrounding cities.  This is what happens to one of the young girls who would later go onto form the singing group.  This girl is Kay (Shari Sebbens).  We see the other three girls going to find her in Melbourne because they respect her talent and need her for the group.

The other three girls are sisters named Cynthia (Miranda Tapsell), Gail (Deborah Mailman) and Julie (Jessica Mauboy).  All four girls have their own flaws and strengths and it is these characteristics that help them to gel and form a cohesive group.  Dave Lovelace discovers them singing country songs in a talent contest at a hotel.  He immediately recognizes their talent but stresses the need to refocus that talent and boundless energy into the singing of soul music.

When the chance to travel to Viet Nam comes up, the group auditions and is accepted to perform there much to their delight.  Once in Saigon, the girls start performing and growing as individuals.  They meet men, sing, and some of the girls begin romantic relationships with American soldiers.  There are also moments of worry and danger that inevitably arise in the war-torn atmosphere.

The music in this film is addictive and enjoyable.  The characters are interesting and amusing.  There are funny moments and critique of Australian society.   This is not a very complex or deep film and it is quite conventional but it has its charm and admirable qualities.  If you’re looking for a light but entertaining true-story with good music, this one may be for you.

***/****

American Hustle (2013, dir. David O. Russell) **.5/****

I highly anticipated the screening of American Hustle.  The previews looked very cool.  The late 70’s period detail of the trailer seemed spot-on accompanied by the rocking soundtrack of Led Zeppelin’s “Good Times, Bad Times”.  I wanted to like this movie.  But, I found myself, at the end of the film a little disappointed and let-down.  I wanted more action and excitement in the vein of “Goodfellas” which is obviously one of the film’s deepest inspirations. 

The camera work is interesting, the acting is good, the characters are well-drawn and charismatic.  I wanted more from the story and manner in which it was delivered.  A lot happens in this picture:  there is a confusing amount of political and financial scheming and manipulations that may require repeated viewings.  I have to admit, I only saw this film once... maybe upon repeated screenings certain things will become more clear and my appreciation for it will increase.  But after this first initial screening, I was left wanting more.

The film is a little too long for one thing.  It is approximately 2 hours and 20 minutes.  Shaving a little off the final cut may have added some enjoyment to the film.

As for the actors, Christian Bale is an overweight, comb-over-wearing, high-strung, and morally ambivalent shyster, who’s commanding presence bolsters the film in a positive direction.  Amy Adams is captivating, elusive and sexy in her gowns and sleek costumes.  Bradley Cooper is cast in a complex characterization that will leave you loving and hating him at the same time with his permed do.  He plays an FBI agent who will do anything, including bending the law, to get his own way.  There are also neat little supporting performances from Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence, Louis C.K. and Robert DeNiro.  

My raving about the acting and performers may make my review sound more positive.  That is my intent.  There are many admirable qualities about this film.  There is just a little something that is missing at the heart of the film’s screenplay.  A lot happens without anything happening at all and you are not left with the satisfying oomph of David O. Russell’s previous films and Scorsese’s gangster films to which this film will be and already is being compared.  

This is not the best film of the year.  It has its moments.  But it doesn’t live up to its own intent and ambition.

**.5/****