On the Waterfront - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"Isn't it simple as one, two, three? One: The working conditions are bad. Two: They're bad because the mob does the hiring. And three: The only way we can break the mob is to stop letting them get away with murder."

The late Marlon Brando is widely regarded as the greatest actor of all time, but until very recently, The Godfather was the only movie of his that I had watched. That being said, I wanted my new classic movie segment to start out with a bang, so what better choice than the greatest actor of all time's most  critically acclaimed movie was there? I saw At The Waterfront yesterday, and from the very beginning of the movie, I knew that I was in for treat. I knew the movie was gonna be a lot different from the movies I usually watch, seeing as it's almost 60 years old and all, but I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how powerful it actually is. As stated in my latest update post, I personally have a hard time getting out of my comfort zone and give older movies a shot, even though I'm well aware that these movies often are some of the more incredible and memorable ones. If you're one of these people as well, please, for the love of God, go watch On the Waterfront or any other old classic for that matter. Give it a chance, and I promise you that your view will change, and a whole new world of fantastic movies will open up for you. 

On the Waterfront came out in 1954 and immediately received wide critical acclaim, which also showed at that year's academy awards. Marlon Brando won his first oscar for his portrayal of Terry Malloy, a tough, mistreated but goodhearted longshoreman, and the movie was also rewarded with awards such as best picture, best screenplay and best director. Brando's character is a young dock worker who works at the waterfront in New Your City, a business that was completely dominated by the mob at that time, and like everyone else, he does whatever his bosses tell him to. Even though the working conditions were horrible and the pay was extremely low, the workers had no other choice than to do what they were told, if they didn't want to end up dead in a back alley. An eyeopening experience, a determined catholic priest and a lovely young woman eventually make Terry question whether or not he's capable of withstanding the mistreatment, the dominance and the corruption of the mob any longer, and as the movie gets going, our main character realises that the only way to make things better for him and his colleagues is to do something about the problem himself. 

This movie definitely is an "oscar worthy"-kind of movie, in the sense that it has a great message about the society of the 1950's and the people who lived in it to tell. Even though that kind of movie often tend to bore the regular movie goer, On the Waterfront did an good job of staying interesting and captivating throughout it's entire run time, which in my opinion largely is because of the way it's put together. Even though the commonly used Hollywood-model of "character introduction first, escalation of the main issue second, grand finale last" that the movie follows is extremely cliché'd, there's something very pleasing about the way everything that happens makes sense. All the scenes somehow seem to connect and mean something more to each other than they usually do, and all the little hints, details and character specific trademarks are followed up upon and used later in the movie to really emphasise something else. As a result, everything that happens in this movie seems important and well thought out, as if nothing happened by chance. It's a solid, well created movie that probably deserved to win the oscar for best picture, but more importantly, for best editing as well. 

Another very important part of this movie is the message it tells and the themes that it uses to do so. Terry is faced with several moral dilemmas throughout the movie, and the way he struggles to determine whether or not he should act on his own behalf or do what he knows in his heart is the right thing to do, is a joy to watch most of the time. Father Berry (played by Karl Malden) is crucial to this element of right vs. wrong, and he's the only person who tries to stand up to the mob to begin with. He has several scenes in which he tries to convince the workers On the Waterfront that the only way they can improve their situation is to stand up against the mob and witness against them in court, even though he knows it'll endanger their lives. This leads into another one the issues that the movie raises about society, which is the question of whether it's okay to be a "rat", someone who passes information on to the police. These moral dilemmas between choosing to do what is best for one self or what is best for the people around you is the core theme of On the Waterfront. I personally think that it was an alright plot, but then again, it wasn't nearly as interesting as some of the other elements of the movie. It felt a little too educational and a bit too shoehorned into the movie as well. 

One of the things about this movie that surprised me the most, is how quickly I bought the eventual romance between Terry Malloy (Brando) and Edie Doyle (played by Eva Marie Saint). It didn't take nearly as long before I got on board with their relationship and started caring about what was going to happen to them as it usually does, and I'm honestly not sure why. Both actors won academy awards for their performances in this movie, but honestly, I've seen romances before that were just as well acted as this one, but were as interesting to me as George Clooney's batnipples in Batman and Robin are. (weird, my computer doesn't recognise the word "batnipple".) What I do know is that the relationship between these two characters was the thing I liked the most about the whole movie, because it was incredibly important to me that they were gonna be alright and and figure things out. Marlon Brando's performance in On the Waterfront, which I'd heard basically in itself is what makes this movie a classic, was, as predicted, completely off the chain. Brando's way of becoming the character which he portrays is incomparable to anything I've seen in a long time, and his addition to this movie undoubtedly is one of it's biggest draws.

Watching On the Waterfront was a very pleasant and eye opening experience for me, because it made me realise that older movies can be just as enjoyable as newer ones. My favourite parts were Marlon Brando's acting and his and Eva Marie Saint's relationship, and the way the movie was put together and told through great editing, phasing and cinematography is truly admirable. My only real problem with the movie is that I felt as though the main plot was more interesting than entertaining, which in turn meant that I had to stay completely focused whilst watching and movie, in fear of loosing interest in what it was trying to say. The script definitely is oscar worthy for the reasons I talked about earlier, it just wasn't as entertaining and captivating to me as other parts of the movie were. For this reason, On the Waterfront, the all time classic, "only" gets my seal of approval, which of cause still is a good rating. (4/6)

On the Waterfront IMDb page here

On the Waterfront trailer link here

Update #4 - Classic Movies and Comfort Zones

Even though I've done over twenty reviews since I started blogging, none of them has been about a movie that's more than 20 years old. Se7eN came out in 1995 (18 years ago as of today), and to this date it's still the oldest movie that I've ever written about. The reason for this lack of older movie reviews is quite simple; For some reason, I just don't watch old movies. I used to consider myself a movie enthusiast, but honestly, how can I, when all I watch and write about is movies that are younger than myself? I'm well aware that there are hundreds of classics from before the sixties that are just waiting for me to see them, and I know that a lot of them are considered must see for anyone who sees themselves as movie fans. So, why is it I've never just gone ahead and seen a classic film? It's simple really; I'm afraid of leaving my comfort zone. 

Doing new stuff is something I've always been very sceptical about. Whether it's talking to new people, trying out new sports, listening to music I've never heard of before or watching movies that aren't like the ones I'm sure I'll enjoy, testing unknown waters is something I've never been good at. Sure, I'd like to be that guy who's just able to open himself up to new people and new impressions, I'm sure that's a heck of a lot funnier than doing what I do, but that's just not the kind of person I am. Trusting people and and really letting them get to know me isn't something that happens very often, and unlike most 18-year-old guys, I only have about 5-6 friends that I'd describe myself as being really close to and open with. I don't mean to make it sound as if befriending The Andrew Lawrence is some prestigious honor, I'm just trying to explain my situation as best as possible. 

So how does this apply to movies and blogging you ask? Simply put; I don't watch a lot of movies from the 80's and 70's, and none from before that. Sure, I've seen a few all time greats like Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Deer Hunter and 2001: A Space Odyssey, but really old classics like Citizen Cane, Casablanca, 12 Angry Men, Vertigo and Rear Window, I have not. Seeing as I'm well aware that these are all highly praised and respected movies that any movie enthusiast with the slightest amount of self respect have seen, confessing that I haven't done so myself is something I'm not very proud of. 

It's never too late to make a change though. Yesterday I accidentally came across a YouTube review of an old Charlie Chaplin movie, and there was just something special about the deeply passionate way that this guy was talking about a movie that came out all the way back in 1940, that made me realise just how much enjoyment I've been missing out on. In that moment I decided that I had had enough of Bruce Willis, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, and I sat myself down and watched my first 50's movie in God knows how long. Needless to say I had a great time, and I don't know how I've let myself miss out on movies like the one I saw for so long. I've always known that this is how I'd end up feeling about it, but sticking with newer movies was just so much easier to do, rather than trying out something new. Or old. You get what I' trying to say. 

I plan on creating a new segment on my blog called Classic Movie Reviews, and the first installment of that series will be coming out later today. My plan is to make one classic review for every two or three of the regular reviews, since I don't intent to stop watching new movies completely. It'll be a nice, balanced mix of new and old, and I believe I'm going to enjoy this new approach greatly. 

/Andrew

Pretty Much It YouTube channel link here

(these are the guys who made the Chaplin movie review I talked about)

Up in the Air - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"The stars will wheel forth from their daytime hiding places; and one of those lights, slightly brighter than the rest, will be my wingtip passing over."

Up in the Air is a movie about Ryan Bingham (played by George Cloonery), whose job consists of travelling all around America firing people. He's on the road almost 300 days every year which means that airports, planes and hotels have become a part of his daily routine, and they're basically the closest thing to a home that he has. Ryan enjoys this lifestyle immensely, because he doesn't believe in things like having children, getting married, settling down and bonding too much with other people. When his company eventually decides to modernise their business and plan to begin firing people using video conversations over the Internet instead of face to face, our main character's only passion is threatened to be taken from him, which causes him to reconsider the choices he's made in his life. As he sets out on his final business trip, Ryan is joined by Natalie Keener (played by Anna Kendrick), the young hotshot who came up with the video conversation idea. These two character's radically different ideas and philosophies of life, and more importantly how they clash and lay the foundation for some very interesting conversations, are the main themes of this movie.

I went on IMDb to check out Up in the Air Air before I got a chance to see it, and it's description reminded me a lot of Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation, one of my favourite movies of all time. This automatically raised the bar for this movie extremely high, and sure enough, they do have a lot of things in common, but there's at least just as many things that are unique to each movie. One of the things they have in common is the way they deal with themes like loneliness and the purpose of life, and even though Up in the Airnever really gets close to being as spellbinding and emotionally affecting as Lost In Translation is, it's still a very good movie that kept me interested from start to finish. George Clooney's character Ryan Bingham and his way of living is the most important thing in this film, mainly because of the way it changes as the story goes on, and because of what this means to the over all theme and message of the film. 

To begin with, Ryan enjoys being alone and on the move all the time, never staying in one place for more than a few days. When he gets introduced to Kendric's character and strikes up a casual relationship with Alex Goran (played by Vera Farminga) however, the conversations and banter between the three of them begin to affect Ryan more than he'd like to admit. All three characters have different ways of approaching life and things like partnership, family, age and dreams, and the interaction between the three of them is one of this movie's most important elements. Seeing as this is the case, Up in the Air is a dialogue driven movie in every sense of the word, which means that it relies heavily Clooney's, Farminga's and Kendrick's abilities to deliver their lines and connect with each other in a believable and professional manner. Luckily all three actors are on the top of their game in this movie (all of them earned oscar nominations for their performances), and to me, the above average chemistry that these three actors share in this movie is it's strongest selling point by far. 

One of the things I noted very early on when watching Up in the Air, is the fact that it's filmed and edited in a way that you normally wouldn't see in a Hollywood film. Sometimes it seems as though the camera is being hand held, an element that served to make the movie seem more realistic and authentic, and the way all the people that Clooney has fired talk to the camera as if they're being interviewed is quite remarkable because it emphasises the "realistic documentary feel" of the movie. As a result of this, the occurrences in this movie are strangely relatable and therefore much more believable than they otherwise would have been.

Realistic editing and great acting aside, the most important part of this movie, by far, is the different human emotions and choices that Clooney's character struggle to understand and deal with. I feel like the director's main objective when creating this movie was to make the viewer think about things like trust, love, happiness and family, and to make you reevaluate whether or not you're doing what makes you and the people around you happy. Ryan Bingham has several revelations throughout the movie that I think almost everyone who watches the movie somehow can relate to, and it's kinda remarkable to me how precisely this movie dealt with a lot of the same things that I put a lot of thought into myself. This is probably exactly what Up in the Airs director Jason Reitman had in mind when creating the movie, and I applaud him for creating a picture that isn't as much a tool to make money as it is an attempt at telling a story that'll make the audience think about their lives and the choices they've made. This element is another one of those things I believe Lost In Translation and Up in the Air has in common.

Whilst watching this movie, I was pleasantly surprised at how funny it actually is. Particularly Anna Kendrick's character cracked me up several times, and it was nice to see that the movie wasn't too proud of itself to incorporate some humour into the script, which honestly would have been a little boring otherwise. The writers found a great balance between the serious and the comedic dialogue, which ultimately made the movie more enjoyable that it would have been if one of the two elements would have been dominant over the other. That being said, the movie did loose me a couple of times, especially when it drifted more towards being a romantic comedy than a drama with comedic and romantic elements. When everything is said and done though, Up in the Air is a sweet, clever, funny and though provoking movie that I enjoyed watching, mainly because of the acting, the writing and the directing. You shouldn't expect anything mind blowing and emotionally extraordinary from Up in the Air, but it is a good time nonetheless, good enough to have earned my seal of approval. (4/6)

Up in the Air IMDb page here

Up in the Air trailer here

Arbitrage - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"How much money do we need? Do you want to be the richest guy in the cemetery?"

In Arbitrage, Richard Gere plays a successful business man from New York, who seems to have everything under control. He's a rich and loving father, a husband and a humanitarian; everything required to be considered a successful human being by most standards. However, as our movie gets going, it becomes apparent that this success is just a facade. Underneath a neat and well organised surface, Robert Miller's life is full of lies, fraud and deceit, and when he eventually makes a gruesome mistake, it suddenly seems very likely that this tainted part of his life is going to be revealed. Miller knows that he'll loose everything and go to jail if his secrets were to be found out, and he therefore does everything in his power to contain the situation and protect the people he cares about.

Right off the bat, the most important part of Arbitrage, the one that had to be done right in order for it to be a success, is the element of having a secret  that only the main character and the audience knows about. If the audience doesn't feel connected to the character and if it doesn't care about whether or not he gets caught, the wole premise of the story falls flat. The TV show Dexter got this element right, at least in the first four seasons, and Arbitrage luckily does as well. Just like Michael C. Halls' character from Dexter, Robert Miller is a criminal that by all rights should go to jail, but the way he's portrayed makes you wish that he won't. Gere's acting and his very well written monologue made me care about the character, so much so that I though of him as the good guy of Tim Roth as the bad, even though it actually was the other way around. Arbitrage hit the nail on the anti hero element perfectly, and had it not, the movie would not have been nearly as good as it.

Also, after having watched this movie, I couldn't help wondering who the guy that decides which performances are worthy of being nominated for awards such as the oscars and the golden globes is, and how much he gets paid. Everyone who's seen it will agree that Richard Gere did a fantastic job in Arbitrage, and most will also agree that he should have been nominated for both of the previously mentioned awards. Richard Gere's efforts are not the only great thing about this movie though, let alone the only great performance, but he undoubtedly did bring the movie to a level that it wouldn't have reached without him. Even though the entire cast did great in general, Tim Roth's and Nate Parker's performances stood out to me, especially Roth's. I have a weakness for this guy and the way he always seems to make his characters seem a bit quirky and a bit off, and his performance as the sleazy and opinionated cop who'll do anything to catch his man adds a lot of good stuff to this movie.

When watching Arbitrage for the first time, it's important to keep in mind that it's a business based thriller about lies and deception, and thus most of the action is in the dialogue. The movie almost feels indi-noir'ish, which definitely is a good thing in my opinion, but the truth is that a lot of people are gonna be bored from the lack of explosions and hot babes in bikinis that this film "suffers" from. My guess is that this is why the movie never saw a huge release anywhere in the world, which is a damn shame, because it truly is a very effective and riveting thriller that a huge audience would have enjoyed, if they had just the had the chance.

One of the reasons why I enjoyed most parts of Arbitrage as much as I did and think that a lot of other people would as well, is the fact that it's an easy movie to watch and enjoy. Yes, it does throw some convoluted businessman/lawyer-lingo around a few times, but  as a whole, it's a fairly short and straight to the point movie that you're able to sit down and watch without having to invest yourself too much in the story. Seeing as my personal favourite movies tend to be deep, dark, mysterious and sometimes even existentialistic dramas such as Fight Club, Magnolia and The Shining, I was kind of taken aback when I realised how much I actually was enjoying this movies simplicity. To be honest though, I actually don't think that being easy to digest and fairly straight to the point was the directors and the writers ultimate vision for this movie. 

What I mean by this is that there are a few things that happen during the movie that hints towards a bigger and more grand message about society, corporations, money, greed and power, and most of the time I wasn't really sure where this was going. This subplot felt a little underdeveloped in my opinion, and it was only in the very end that the director went all in on this idea. Normally I don't mind at all when a movie waits until the last few minutes before dropping it's big message and ending it at that, but in the case of Arbitrage, it felt as though the ending tried to be something that the rest of the movie was not. It went from being a simple story about a businessman with a dark side who tries to cover up his tracks, into trying to say something clever about society and what's wrong with it. No matter how gorgeously this last scene is filmed and presented, it didn't fit the tone of the rest of the movie. 

In the end, I will say that Arbitrage is a very entertaining and easy to watch movie that will keep most audiences entertained and engrossed from start to finish. Apart from the amazing acting, the movie did everything it tried to do just fine. It's nothing amazing or completely original or anything like that, but it's good enough for me to wanna recommend it to anyone that enjoys a good thriller. Most people are not gonna notice the few flaws that I think the movie does have, and even if you do, you'll still have a good time watching Richard Gere look better at 60 than 99 % of other men do at 30. If that's not seal of approval worthy, I don't know what is. (4/6)

Arbitrage IMDb page here

Arbitrage trailer link here

Magnolia - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"And the book says: "We might be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us."

It's been a while since I reviewed one of my all time favourite movies, and for good reason. I think everyone that enjoys writing, drawing, painting or any other form of creative activity will agree that you always look back on your early work and cringe at what you see, and even though I've only been doing this for less than six months, I'm a victim of this phenomenon as well. I find my very first blog posts rather horrible, mainly because I was a lot worse at writing back then, but also because I started out writing about all my favourite movies all at once. I honestly think those reviews are repetitive and a little boring to say the least, and when I came to this realisation sometime during February, I decided to wait a good while before writing about another favourite. I rewatched Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia a couple of days ago though, and decided it was about time I immortalised my thoughts about it on the interwebs, when I found myself tearing up just 10 minutes into the movie.

Magnolia is one of those movies that has a huge array of different characters that are all somehow connected to each other, in this case by a quiz show on TV, and these characters each take part in one or several of six plot lines/stories that affect and influence each other in some way or another. The events of the movie take place in a medium size town somewhere in California over a period of about 24 hours, and it becomes apparent right from the beginning that all of the main characters are dealing with some sort of inner struggle. Each of the characters and their problems are depicted in very specific detail, and for it to make sense, writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson had to make the movie three hours and eight minutes long. This is a hell of a long movie, but, if you have the patience that is required and are a fan of fantastic film making, I guarantee that Magnolia will keep you immensely entertained from start to finish. 

After my first viewing of this movie, the only thing I really found memorable about it was it's music. Of cause, I've come to love a bunch of other things about about it after several additional viewings, but there's still something about this music that just gets me every time. Aimee Mann composed and wrote eleven original songs for this movie, and although Hans Zimmer's Now We Are Free from Gladiator is still my favourite movie song, Mann's One, Save Me and Wise Up, all from Magnolia, are very close contenders to the number one spot. These songs fit the situations in which they are played absolutely perfectly, and they serve as a brilliant tool to amplify the desired effects of the specific scenes. The most memorable example is the utilisation of the song Wise Up, which takes place about two thirds into the movie. I won't spoil it, but I promise that it's one of the more memorable and unique experiences you'll ever have watching a movie. I know that talking a bunch about the music of a movie as one the very first things might not seem logical, but I really mean it when I say that it's one of the most important things about the whole movie. Listen to it on Spotify or on YouTube trough the provided links, you'll understand what i mean. 

Aimee Mann sure did an amazing job, but of cause, there's still a bunch of things about Magnolia that are just as fantastic. The cast immediately comes to mind, and oh man, what a brilliant fucking cast it is. Julian Moore, William H. Macy, John C. Riley, Tom Freaking Cruise, Philip Seymour Hoffmann, Philip Baker Hall, Jason Robards and Melora Walters, all cream of the crop actors that bring their absolute a-game in this film. It's a huge cast, and the fact that all of their characters are equally important and vital to the story, none of them getting boring, disposable or forgetable for even a minute, is a testimony to just how gifted Paul Thomas Anderson is at creating and developing characters in his movies. Julian Moore's character is my personal favourite, partly because she's my favourite actress of all time, but mostly because her character seems so real. She doesn't use any sort of sophisticated Hollywoodishly fake and inhumane poetrylike dialogue to express how miserable she is, instead, she slaps people around, acts like a bitch, and curses three times in every sentence. Her way of dealing with what's going on and what she's done in her past is realistic and believable, and one of my favourite things about the whole movie. 

Writing about all the remaining characters would take way too long, but I have to express my thoughts on at least a few more of them. Quiz Kid Donnie smith, played by William H. Macy, is the only character that almost never gets into contact with any of the other principle characters. This is done to emphasize how lonely the character is, and the way William Macy portrays this is simply amazing. He always does a good job at playing weak, lonely, sad and helpless characters, just look at my movie review of Fargo. In Magnolia he's absolutely heart wrenching, and one of my favorite characters for sure. I almost made his quote "I really do have love to give, I just don't know where to put it!" the tag line of this review, for the simple reason that it summarises his character perfectly. The one you see up there now, also spoken by Quiz Kid Donnie Smith by the way, fits the movie better as a whole tough. It was either that or "respect the cock!".

Some people believe that Tom Cruise gives his best performance of all time in this movie, and although I do agree that he is very convincing as Frank T.J. Mackey, a sexist, bitter and traumatised "ladies man", I think he was a little better in both Minority Report and Collateral. That doesn't mean he's not freaking great in this movie though, and his character is the one that experiences the biggest personal transformation of them all. John C. Riley and Melora Walters have some great chemistry in their shared scenes, Riley giving what i believe is his best personal performance, and Philip Seymour Hoffmann was terrific at playing a male nurse, however ridiculous that may sound. It was funny to see him work with Tom Cruise in such a peaceful manner, considering how they would go on to try and kill each other several times in Mission Impossible III seven years later. To sum it up; all Paul Thomas Anderson's films are centered around characters. Just look at the The Master and There Will Be Blood for an example; both movies have several shining examples of amazing character development. In Magnolia, there's nine. 

"And the book says: "We might be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us."" There's a good reason why I chose this quote as the tag line for this review. All the principle characters in Magnolia are struggling with inner demons that have tight grips on their individual pasts, and they're stuck in a miserable an enjoyable present because of this. The over all theme and message of the movie is that you don't necessarily have let go of the past in order go move on, but instead look the devil in the eye, confront your fears, and accept and forgive yourself for being who you are. Cruise's character is the one that has the hardest time doing this, and as a result, he's the one that reacts the heaviest when things start to go awry. At one point near the ending of the movie, when everyone is doing the exact opposite of what Paul Thomas Anderson is trying to teach the audience about forgiving yourself, something completely unexpected and surreal, almost divine, happens. An unimaginative and close minded audience member might consider this incident unrealistic and anti climatic, but if you have been payed attention to the development of the story and the characters and have a bit of biblical knowledge, your jaw is gonna drop like the base would in a night club. D-d-d-d-drop the jaw. I was completely swept away by this twist the first time I saw it, and it's one of my favourite things that has ever happened in any movie ever. EVER. 

Being the movie magician that he is, Paul Thomas Anderson wrote and directed Magnolia as close to perfectly as humanly possible. I've only watched three of his movies, but there's no doubt in my mind that he's my favourite director of all time, simply because he understands character development and the interaction between actor, script and camera down to a science. Everything about Magnolia is perfect in my opinion, from the editing to the music, the acting, the dialogue, the character development, the phasing, the cinematography; it's spellbindingly good. This 1999 masterpiece almost makes me tear up several times, it's my favourite Paul Thomas Anderson movie, one of my favourite movies of all time, and 110% worthy of my highest rating. In other words: There's no two ways about it. Magnolia is Movie Magic at its finest. (6/6)

Magnolia IMDb page here

Magnolia movie trailer here

500 Days of Summer - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"Most days of the year are unremarkable. They begin, and they end, with no lasting memories made in between. Most days have no impact on the course of a life. May 23rd was a Wednesday."

I've never been a huge fan of romantic movies, and no matter how convincingly a friend or family member of mine will try to persuade me into watching one, I hardly ever take their suggestion to heart and actually watch the movie. Maybe it's because I'm a guy and find the genre boring, maybe it's because I find it too girlish, or it could just be because there are so many other genres that are more satisfying to me, I don't know. Being in this position, having to ride a train for two hours with my little sister every now and again in order to see my dad comes in handy. I often get a chance to see some movies I wouldn't have chosen to see otherwise on these trips, seeing as I often let my sister pick which movie to watch whilst we travel. Today she picked 500 Days of Summer, and I'm happy she did.

In 500 Days of Summer, Tom, a young and semi depressed postcard designer meets and falls in love with Summer, an opinionated young woman who doesn't believe that true love exists. The two of them eventually hook up, and thus we have our movie. 500 Days' main focus is to depict the ups and downs that all couples experience, and although this sounds like a really cliched plotline, the movie goes a long to way to tell its' story in a way that leaves the audience feeling like they just witnessed something different from the old ordinary romantic comedy. The editing is a huge part of this sense of originality in my opinion, as is the choice of the main character and his point of view, but most importantly, I believed that the things I saw on the screen could actually take place in real life, and I found that I had to remind myself several times that I was watching a movie and not a documentary. I recently watched The Deer Hunter for the first time, and no matter how great that movie is, I couldn't help thinking about stuff like "how did they film that shot?" or "wow, that scene was really well acted" whilst watching it. This might not sound like a bad thing, but the fact that I was more intrigued about the technical stuff that went into creating the film than by the actual story and the character development, ultimately drags it down a lot. 500 Days never did that. I was completely intrigued in the plot from start to finish, thanks to it's originality.

500 Days Of Summer is music video director marc Webb's first attempt at directing a full scale picture, and he did a fantastic job in my opinion. The attention to detail and the superb way all the different scenes fit together is impressive to say the least, the phasing of the movie is just right, and the plot never feels too drawn out or too rushed. The story is told in a non-linear fashion, with bits and pieces from different situations spread out across 500 days being mixed together in a surprisingly cohesive and smooth manner, and the way Webb handles the transitions between two bits of story is really good looking and well thought up. The whole movie kind of feels like a scrap book, and I have to say that I really enjoyed the way the director and the editors put it together. The actors did a great job as well; Joseph Gordon-Levitt is always a joy to watch, and Zooey Deschanel was really cute and likeable as Summer. The two had some great chemistry throughout the movie, which in it self was really funny most of the time, but really sad at other times as well. To sum it up: All the technical aspects that went into creating 500 Days Of Summer were top notch, the directing, the editing and the writing in particular.

500 Days is one of very few "boy meets girl" stories where the guy's point of view is the most important one. Tom is a really likeable and surprisingly relatable guy, and having him be the main character of the movie worked out nicely. Seeing a romantic movie from the dude's point of view was refreshing to say the least, and it made the movie feel very honest, because it showed that not all guys are egoistic idiots, and that not all girls are innocent and sweet when it comes to relationships. Sometimes girls screw over guys, and that's a fact! Another thing about Marc Webb's first feature film that I enjoyed a lot, is the choice of music that went into it. The Temper Trap's Sweet Disposition is the main theme, and it's a really great song that makes me want to get more involved with music. I used to listen to a lot of music when I was like 15-16 years old, and 500 Days of Summer has made me want to start doing so again.

As mentioned, 500 Days Of Summer is a surprisingly refreshing take on the done to death "boy meets girl" cliche storyline. The narrator of the movie states that "this isn't a love story, but a story about love", which is absolutely true, and this one line summarises the movie perfectly. I consider 500 Days refreshing because it's a very realistic depiction of how things work out when two people fall in love, one that Isn't hollywood'ised and unbelievable, and as a result, this movie left me feeling like I had just witnessed something fresh and out of the ordinary. It sort of lit a fire underneath me, and it made me realise that movies still have the ability to surprise people and reinvent themselves, something I find very satisfying to think about. Watching this movie has gotten me all exited about what the future will bring in terms om films and cinema, simply because it is as different and alternative as it is. Thank you 500 Days Of Summer, thank you.

I mentioned earlier that I'm not a big sucker for RomComs. My favourite movie genre is dark dramas with deep and exciting character development, which basically is the exact opposite of the generic chick flick love movie. I'm always open to surprises and suggestion though, and 500 Days did to me for romantic comedies what Se7eN and Black Swan did for horrors. For what it is, 500 Days is a very satisfying movie in terms of storytelling and realism, so much so that I'd say it's worth buying on BluRay. It's not my favourite movie about love, Brokeback Mountain gets to keep that title for now, but 500 Days of Summer sure is up there. (5/6)

500 Days of Summer IMDb page here

500 Days of Summer trailer here

Take Shelter - A Movie Review by Andrew Lawrence

"You think I'm crazy? Well, listen up, there's a storm coming like nothing you've ever seen, and not a one of you is prepared for it."

Take Shelter is a small budget movie that is written and directed by Jeff Nichols, starring Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain. Curtis (Shannon) is a hard working husband and father, who one night has a very unsettling dream about a terrible storm that tears his house and family apart, and when this dream continues to reappear, Curtis decides to build a storm shelter in his back garden. As his dreams continue to get more disturbing, Curtis becomes more and more convinced that an actual storm of terrible proportions is actually coming, which leads him down a path that his family, friends and colleagues find hard to write off as being completely normal. People start to think Curtis is going crazy, and as a viewer, you begin to wonder the same thing. The question of whether Curtis is mentally ill or whether his concerns are legitimate is the main plot of this movie, and if you enjoy these kinds of mysterious character driven dramas, Take Shelter is sure to keep you greatly entertained. 

Now, every film enthusiast has a favourite genre of movies, be it horror, action, drama or comedy etc. Personally, I find the most enjoyment in dark dramas with deep and engaging characters, and from what I had heard about it, Take Shelter was supposed to be exactly like that. And by God. It is. Explaining how far up my alley this movie is would take hours, so I'll just settle with saying that it's pretty God damn far. It's a very atmospheric movie, meaning that you have to sit yourself down and really 'lock in' in order to get the most out of it. Watching it on a laptop with a pair of bad headphones on a train, in school or anywhere else where you might get distracted by something isn't going to work at all, you just won't get as emotionally engaged as you need to be in order to enjoy this movie as much as you should. A lot of people aren't going to like Take Shelter very much, simply because it requires so much ability to just sit down for two hours and focus on watching a movie. For true fans of cinema and great film making though, this movie is deep, enthralling, thematic and spellbindingly atmospheric; a must see. 

As explained in the beginning for this review, the question of whether Curtis is sane or not is the main plot of the movie, and the way Nichols handles this element is extremely impressive. On one hand you can easily see how the things Curtis are doing to prepare for the (supposedly) impending storm are kinda ludicrous, but on the other hand, his dreams seem really realistic and horrifying, and the way Michael Shannon displays his characters inner fears and struggles are strangely convincing. At no point during the movie was I wholly convinced that either of the two solutions was right, and I flipped between leaning more to one side than the other several times throughout the entire two hours that the movie lasted. The fact that the mystery is so well preserved and carefully constructed is impressive to say the least. It's worth noting that the dreams/nightmares that Curtis is subject to are truly terrifying and well created, and the fact that the film crew managed to make Jessica Chastain more shit-in-pants inducing than hot in one of them is a true feat of greatness. 

Some people who generally liked this movie sadly were turned off by how long it seemed to be at times. Admittedly, there are parts in the early second half that seemed to drag on a bit too long, but it never got to the point where I was bored or lost interest in the story. I agree that the movie could have been a good 15 minutes shorter and still be as effective is it is, but it's not a huge problem in my opinion. I'm very forgiving when it comes to this commonly criticised part of a lot of movies though, and I understand why a lot of less enthusiastic moviegoers than myself are going to loose interest in the plot because of these dragging parts. Forgivable as they are, these bits do limit the movie's re-watch ability somewhat. If you manage to stick with the story to the last act of the movie though, I promise you that you'll witness the most amazing ending to a movie you'll see in a long, long time. The last three scenes or about 20 minutes are intense in such a degree that I'm struggling to put it into words, but rest assured, the climax of Take Shelter is nothing short of jaw-dropping.

Whether you like the movie or not, one thing that every sane person has to agree upon, is the fact that Michael Shannon deserves inhumane amounts of praise for his performance in this movie. Take Shelter is the first movie of his that I've seen, and I'm already convinced that this man is an incredibly talented individual. His facial expressions are authentic and believable, ans the way he delivers his lines, filled with agony and emotion, it's simply surreal. The amount of times I was convinced that his character was completely and utterly insane, yet still lovable and caring is beyond counting, and the list goes on and on. The entire cast was good, but every single one of them, several time oscar nominated Jessica Chastain included, paled in comparison to the powerhouse performance of Michael Shannon. 

When everything is said and done, Take Shelter is a deeply emotional and captivating movie, for those who are capable of appreciating quality film making for what it is. I enjoyed it immensely myself, and I definitely recommend everyone who enjoys a dark drama to give it a go. Jeff Nichols' second feature film is a masterpiece in terms of character driven storytelling and character development in itself, something I enjoy immensely. It's also an extremely underrated movie that didn't see a wide release anywhere in the world, but I truly believe that it's one of those movies that'll gain a large following over time, and will be looked back upon as one of the cult classics of our time. For that reason alone, Take Shelter is easily worth buying on BluRay. (5/6)

Take Shelter IMDb page here

Take Shelter trailer here