Weekend Update.

This weekend actually felt like a productive weekend. I was able to finish my English paper as well as study for my History test (Which I just took, and it was really easy.). I also got a haircut. It sucks. I like my hair long, but my hair gets in my eyes and irritates me. The lady that cut it obviously does not know how to cut in a straight line. Anyways, I decided to reward myself and see a few films. Here are just brief reviews of what I saw.

"Sleuth" (***)
Sleuth is an intriguing cat and mouse, battle of the wits film. It is intriguing and expertly written. The film thrives on the intercourse between Michael Caine and Jude Law. The conversation between them is always captivating and makes for an interesting character study of each. Both Michael Caine and Jude Law give good performances. Jude Law did seem over-the-top at times. He was very maniacal. I think he could have gone with a more subdued performance, but what he did worked. The film dragged somewhat in the middle, but it quickly regains its footing. The cinematography and art direction were also expertly done. The beginning sequence when you see the initial encounter between Jude Law and Michael Caine was captured beautifully through the lens of the security camera; it was a great way to film that segment. Overall, "Sleuth" is a very good film, and it is a shame that its box office intake is so low. This is a film that deserves to be seen.


"Love in the Time of Cholera" (*1/2)
"Love in the Time of Cholera" is a film that had potential, but instead is one of the worst films of the year. Its a love story that follows a mans "devout" love for a woman which spans over 50 years. I have not read the novel the film is based upon, but it is considered a classic. The film, however, is anything but. The story thrives on the thread that these two characters love each other. It seemed like they barely knew each other, and the love never seemed authentic. The characters did not make us believe that they were in love. Some of the dialogue was extremely cheesy. The actors try their best with the roles given to them, but there is not much they can do. The part I found most amusing was towards the end when Javier Bardem's character confesses to his lover that he is a virgin and has waited 53 years for this moment. What is even worse is the viewer is supposed to believe that he has slept with over 600 women. If I have to compliment this film on anything, it has to be the makeup team. They did an excellent job aging the actors. It's pathetic, however, when the makeup crew is the best part of the whole film.

"August Rush" (***)
"August Rush" is a good feel good movie that could have been great. The story is about an orphan who runs away in search of his parents. He says he can hear them and is following the music. His father is in search of his mother, and his mother is in search of her son. It is about all these people in search of something. It is a predictable, cliched story that asks the audience to suspend their belief to believe the impossible and buy into the coincidences. Sometimes, it is easy for the audience to do this. The viewer gets caught up in what is going on and is fully engrossed. Other times, the viewer looks at the film and questions in disbelief what is going on. The film just wasn't consistently captivating. The scenes that were, however, were highly entertaining and were some of the moving, best scenes of the year. I just wish the whole film was like this.