Revisiting: Rat Race

The last time I saw this movie was probably shortly after it came out on DVD. DVD was still in its infancy then, and I clearly remember this being one of the very very first movies my family ever rented on the new format once we got our first new fangled DVD played. Not the first movie we rented, that was "The Little Mermaid II: Return to the Sea" naturally, but this movie might have been rented that same trip to the video store.

And back then I remembering LOVING "Rat Race" like it was the funniest thing that ever happened in the whole world. I even watched it twice that weekend because I couldn't get enough of it. I thought the situations were ridiculously awesome. Imagine - a billionaire sets up a crazy race for $2 million dollars and gives the keys to like seven or eight people - then all these crazy things happen to those people as they race for the money and the billionaire and his friends just sit back and watch and laugh. Nothing could ever EVER top the very Jewish Jon Lovitz mistaking the barbie museum to be about Barbies and not Nazis, as it actually was and then stealing Hitler's car! Or how about that scene where Seth Green and some no namey actor that went nowhere with his career went up the side of the tower at the airport - wait for it - in their truck! It was just too funny and since then I've thought this was one of the funniest movies I've ever seen and has remained on the short list of movies I think of when I think of "comedy."

Well I don't know what could've happened in the nine years that I've last seen this but when I got the chance to record this on my DVR, and excitedly sat down with some popcorn to laugh I found myself utterly bored. And not just bored, I found this movie to have not held up well in the last nine years either. Maybe because a lot of movies have done the same sort of slapstick ridiculousness, or maybe because this was the tale of end of movies doing that, but I was sorely disappointed in the laughs I didn't laugh that I remembered laughing the first time. The bus headed for the "I Love Lucy" convention filled with Lucy's who would act just like Lucille Ball still amused me the most, but as time has gone on, and movies like "Boat Trip" and "Snow Dogs" have happened, I think Cuba Gooding Jr. has lost a lot of the mojo he had going into "Rat Race" and I found him almost unbearable to watch in this.

And poor Breckin Meyers and Amy Smart. Whatever happened to them? I think the 00's swallowed up a bunch of young actors that were supposed to be the next big thing and then spit them out somewhere far from Hollywood. They actually weren't awful to watch, but I had a lot of pity on their careers. And though I won't ruin the ending with who wins the race and the money or what happens to everybody, I will say these two words that happen at the end, two words that may have meant something back in 2001, but today make me wince: Smash. Mouth. Smash Mouth. The entire movie heads up Smash Mouth singing "All Star." Woooooooffffff.

Some parts of this movie, like the "I Love Lucy" bits or Rowan Atkinson's narcolepsy still make laugh, but even the killer line Jon Lovitz's daughter exclaims when she has to poop "I'm prairie dogging it!" - which I have sinced adopted into my own vocabulary - didn't have as much as a punch as it did the first time I saw the movie. Sigh. I wish I loved it as much as I did back then, but maybe I should've relied on those false memories of "Rat Race" instead of rewatching it now and spoiling the romance.


Patrick Approval Rating: 2001 Patrick - 10/10; 2010 Patrick - 5/10


"Rat Race" @ imdb

Revisiting: The Princess and the Frog (DVD)

Shame on you America. Shame shame same. It's a shame more of you didn't see this movie. "The Princess and the Frog" was heralded as Disney's triumphant return to its roots of hand drawn animation, an art form that has all but died, and this was the movie that was going to change that. Well it's a shame that more people did not see this movie,  because it failed to live up to its promise. And not because it wasn't very good, because it was, but because I worry now that it didn't gross 100 billion dollars at the box office when it was released last November that the future of the return of hand drawn animation is in flux.

"The Princess and the Frog" really is quite a fantastic movie. Sure it's not as good as the classic classic Disney films like "Snow White" or "Pinnochio" or the newer second Golden Age films like "The Lion King" or "Beauty and the Beast" but it holds its own among animated films, and is pretty high up on the list of Disney animated features, in my opinion. And it's miles better than some of the animated dreck that has been shoved out by studios the past few years. 

If you don't know Disney and all things Disney hold a special place in my heart, and I can confidently say I'm obsessed with it. So when I heard about this film back when it was called "The Frog Princess" my expectations were high. I knew it was going to be fantastic. And when I saw it in theaters last November, it lived up to all my expectations and then some. I loved the modern fairy tale setting in 1920s jazzy New Orleans, and maybe wish that more of the movie takes place there than in a swamp, but it's all forgiveable. The characters blew me away. I loved the "princess" of the film, Tiana. Voiced by Anika Noni Rose (from "Dreamgirls"!) she is probably the sassiest and rivals Belle as the most flushed out princess of them all. I adored the "prince" Naveen, who is by far the best prince from a Disney film, not counting Aladdin. He had charisma and a personality and wasn't just a lovey dovey sap as other Disney princes are. Supporting characters Louis the trumpet playing alligator and Ray the Cajun firefly also add quite a bit of humor to the movie, and the delightful Mama Odie (which has to be said like MomMA OHdee to be said correctly) is one of the best cameo characters. 

Seeing the film again for the first time on DVD since its theatrical release I loved it just as much. It's beautiful to watch and funny and charming - everything a Disney film should be. I just can't wrap my head around why it didn't do very well in theaters. If only it weren't for those wretched Chipmunks and their lame Squeakqual than maybe "The Princess and the Frog" would've done better. 

Watching this movie on DVD also begins my attempt at watching and reviewing every Disney animated film before their new animated film, "Tangled" comes out this fall. That will be the 50th in their official canon, believe it or not, and I will attempt to revisit all of them including the elusive one I have never actually seen.

Patrick Approval Rating: 10/10

"The Princess and the Frog" @ imdb

Revisiting: Jesus Christ Superstar (DVD)

I have some lame traditions I do every year such as my not so scary Halloween movies in October or my Christmas-y movies during December and "The Nightmare Before Christmas" smushed somewhere in between the two as I still can't figure out what holiday it correlates best with. But one of the easiest traditions, as it doesn't require a full month of dedicating to movies, is watching "Jesus Christ Superstar" at Easter as I can't think of a better way to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus than with a dated rock opera composed by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Which is not to say I don't love this movie. And maybe I don't love the movie as much as I love the music. Despite being written in the very early 70s (the movie came out in 1973) I think the score holds up very well today - and it's one I know almost all of the words too. So if you're looking for a one man production of "JCS," look no further, I'm your man. I think the first time I was exposed to the show was in middle school in music class where we watched this movie. What makes that all the more intriguing was that I went to a Catholic middle school - so I'm surprised this was allowed seeing how it does take some liberties with the Biblical story, but then again, the school's choir would sing songs from "Sister Act" during masses, so maybe it shouldn't be all that surprising. Well what I'm trying to say is that I love the score from this show,  it's one of my favorites, and so that's why I watch this movie every year during the time of year that Christians celebrate the story.

That all being said, I think the movie is sometimes chilling and beautiful to look at, as it was all filmed on location in Israel, which lends the movie some authenticity that the staged remake from 2000 that was all shot on a soundstage lost - but the original has wayyy too much 1973 in its DNA, which makes the movie very dated. I think the concept of a modern troupe of actors telling the story with a modern rock score in the ancient Middle East and shot on ruins of temples and such is awesome, but the modern in that sense, is the modern from almost 40 years ago. Bright fakey colors, outrageous costumes, and old school special effects (including, but not limited to: too much use of slow motion, freeze framing, and overlapping fades) give the movie a very 1970s quality. Not to mention the song "Could We Start Again Please?" which is shot on a mountain side and looks a lot like the "I'd Like to Buy the World a Coke" commercial from the same era. But I love it all so, and if you take the movie for what it's for, and take in the powerful performances from some great singers it's a good, fun movie and a tradition I'll be keeping for some time.

Happy Easter!


Patrick Approval Rating: 7/10


"Jesus Christ Superstar" @ imdb

Review: A Single Man (Theatrical)

Wow. So this movie happened and I kind of went home from the theater feeling numb. Now after I saw "Precious" my body ached with pain, but after "A Single Man" I just wanted to curl up in my bed and hug my teddy bear. If you don't know, the movie is about George, a middle aged college professor played by Colin Firth whose lover of sixteen years, Jim, was killed in a car accident eight months before the action takes place. And on this day the movie takes place in George's life he has decided to kill himself because he is a lonely, miserable, single man who feels like he is drowning underwater and cannot breathe through his loneliness. At school that day he meets a young student who has an interest in him and comes on to George, who at first pushes him away, but through persistence, the boy, played by Nicholas Hoult, gets to George and...well...I don't want to spoil the rest of the movie, because I think you should all see this one.

So the story is good, but the movie as a whole is great. Everything from the cinematography to the score to the acting is quite close to perfection. It's hard to believe the movie was directed by a first time director, nevermind a director who is normally a fashion designer. Tom Ford directs the movie like a pro, and his designer eye lends itself beautifully to film. Whereas I feel sometimes film is all over the place and I don't quite get it, I got everything single thing in this movie. When I saw Stephen Sondheim lecture at Williams a couple weeks ago one of the things that really stuck in my head was when he said "Art is a conscious effort" and I think Tom Ford really took that to every frame, every shot, every composed moment in this film - it was all a piece of art that was consciously thought about, and I ate that up like the rice and beans I had for dinner tonight. The bleak colors and tinting to George's world when he was alone and lonely, and how the film and colors would literally subtly brighten up every time he made a connection with another person made me squeal with joy. It just worked! And the opening credits! Oh my, how amazing they were. A naked Colin Firth sinking deeper and deeper into this murky water while this pounding, driving score played. Beautifully sad.

The music overall was amazing - I'm not sure who wrote it, and I'm too lazy right now to look it up, but I could feel the darkness of the film in the music. I don't often notice the music of a movie, which is usually a good thing, it's not supposed to stand out - but maybe when it does stand out and makes an emotional impact, the music is super awesome. And it was in "A Single Man." OH! And the acting - well I haven't even touched on that yet! Colin Firth is so far my favorite to win, even though he probably won't. His best moment in a movie full of amazing ones was when he hears Jim has died - I could see his heart break on the screen. His chest heaved up and down and I was sucked into his pain. So much so I didn't even notice it was Mad Man's Jon Hamm on the other end of the phone! But Amy picked up on that. Firth really made George real, taking in each last moment of his last day of life - even when he creepily smelled a stranger's dog and said it smelled like buttered toast. Umm...sure it's creepy, but actually kind of really true. Sometimes my Sydney dog at home smells like toast too. Not that I smell her on purpose, but it's noticeable. She's cute and so it's forgivable. Also the scene where George tries to kill himself and cannot find a comfortable way of doing it KILLED ME. Not literally, but I was stifling laughter because it shouldn't have been funny, but it most definitely was. I think the other people in the theater just didn't have a sense of humor. And why Julianne Moore isn't nominated for an Oscar this year when she was nominated for every other award for this movie is beyond me. Her character Charley, George's hag, was absolutely pathetically in love with George and a big giant bitch because she couldn't do anything about it. The scene where she is spending so much time applying and perfecting the makeup for just one of her eyes so she can look pretty for George when they meet that night killed me. It's so tragic.

Obviously, if you can't tell by now I loved and adored the movie even though it made me tense and forget to breathe on occasion. It's a downer, with no happy ending, so don't go into it expecting to leave feeling "light in your loafers" but it comes highly recommended for me. I can't wait to revisit this one.

Patrick Approval Rating: 10/10

"A Single Man" @ imdb

Special: 2009 in Movies

When this past year started I set out to make this my "year of the movies." I kept every ticket stub from my trips to the movies and restarted up my Netflix and in order to not only see the big and important theatrical releases, but to catch up and finally get to see those movies I should have seen a long time ago.

A personal highlight of the movie seeing year was seeing every movie nominated for the Oscars in the Best Picture, Actress, Actor, Supporting Actress and Actor, and Best Director categories. I never had attempted to that before and I always feel uninformed when it comes to the Oscars, which hail as one of the most important nights of the year to me, likewise to a normal person liking the Superbowl. Seeing all those movies was an expensive achievement, and one I don't think I'll be able to replicate this year. Not because I don' t want to, but because most Oscar movies don't seem to get released up here in the glorious Berkshires. I certainly will try to see them all and I'm already on my way with another two-ish months left!

Now: because I LOVE making lists, I'm gonna make one for my favorites and not favorites of 2009. This is not counting any movie I saw twice or any movie that I've seen before. I saw 28 new movies in the theaters this year, as well as an even 50 movies on DVD.

My Top 10 Movies of the Year:

1) Up

I can't recall a movie that has made me sob within the first 10 minutes, (well maybe except for Wall-E, and that was more because of the brilliance of that opening and not the actual story itself.) Recently rewatching Up, I might love it even more. Brilliant story, impressive animation, and three of the most entertaining characters in Russell, Dug, and Carl Fredricksen.

2) Avatar

This movie was my first 3-D movie going experience and it blew my mind. If Star Wars and Lord of the Rings and Titanic mated, then Avatar would be their love child. Sure the story was a little cliched, and the script might not have been totally original, but that didn't botherme one single bit. Maybe if the the story was more complicated on top of the ridiculous visuals, the average audience member's brain would be overloaded and combust. We'll have to see how this movie holds up into the future (and not in 3-D) but I loved it and think I will for a while.

3) The Princess and the Frog

The glorious return to the classic animated form by Disney. I think it is in my nature to love this movie, evenif it wasn't good, which I thought was not the case. It certainly lived up to every expectation I had and maybe even surpassed some of them. Shoutouts to Mama Odie and the best villain song since Ursula screamed "Body language!" And Tiana and Naveen might be my favorite Disney couple ever. Sorry Aladdin and

Jasmine.

4) Milk

Now here is a movie I think every American needs to see right NOW!For real, if you haven't seen it yet, get out there, watch it, be moved, and tell everybody else about it. I think America's attitude about what it means to love another person would change if everybody watched Milk. Besides the powerful message of the movie, Sean Penn was incredible as Harvey Milk, and maybe even better was Josh Brolin who gave a layered and complex performance as Milk's political opponent.

5) Precious

This movie ripped out my heart and stomped on it, then put it back, ripped it out again and then stomped on it some more. It's one of those movies that I have a hard time saying I liked, like Schlinder's List or Monster, because the events that transpire during the movie are awful, but the films the

mselves are excellent. Plus Mo'Nique was terrifying as Precious' mother. I couldn't believe this was the same woman who I watched host Showtime at the Apollo on UPN on Saturday nights at 1:00AM. Yes I really watched that show.

6) Away We Go

This one kind of slipped under the radar this year, but I rented it on DVD and loved it so much. I laughed, I cried, it was fantastic. Who knew Maya Rudolph was a fantastic actress and John Krasinski, aka Jim, can do no wrong. The movie feels so real in every way.

7) Star Trek

A complete surprise to me as I never thought I'd like, nay WATCH a Star Trek movie, but this one had me hooked from the beginning. I needed no prior knowledge of the Star Trek-verse to like the movie, but the small bits I did know helped me appreciate homages thrown in. Well done, JJ.

8) Doubt

Please, Meryl Streep, Philip Seymour Hoffman, and Amy Adams are fantastic. I believe when told people what I thought of this after I saw it I said I wanted to "Lick the screen because Meryl Streep is that good."

9) District 9

I was definitely intrigued with the concept of the movie, and after I saw it, loved the mashup of science fiction with a realistic parable. A totally unique vision that had me alternately squirming, cringing, and getting all riled up.

10) This Is It

How did the Michael Jackson concert film make my top 10!? Seriously, I'm not sure. I didn't know what to expect, but it was beyond anything I thought it could be. To see the genius this man was, and to watch him in action and love it, it made me realize how much the world lost with his death this past summer.

And because I couldn't choose just 10, here's the runner ups.

11) Nine

12) Sunshine Cleaning

13) Watchmen

14) The Proposal

15) Taking Woodstock

Favorite movies that I saw in 2009 but weren't released in 2009:

- The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007)

- Love Me If You Dare (Thank you Mallori for introducing me to this French film with one of my favorite actresses, Marion Cotillard)

- On the Waterfront

- A Streetcar Named Desire

- The Laramie Project

- E.T. (Yes it’s the first time I had actually seen the entire movie!)

- North by Northwest

- All About Eve

- The Silence of the Lambs

- White Christmas


Biggest Surprises:
- Zombieland (I thought this one was hysterically awesome. Very Grindhouse.)
- Ghost Town (Ricky Gervais made this movie. I love his humor.)
- The Duchess (I don't really like period dramas very much but liked this one a lot. Keira Knightly was fantastic.)
- 17 Again (So the 12 year old girl in me loved this movie. So what? I don't care.)


Biggest Disappointments:
- Where the Wild Things Are (Fell asleep and was bored. Sorry.)
- Nine (I wanted so much more from this movie. The acting was good, the songs were amazing, but the movie itself just lacked...something, but I still liked it a hella lot.)
- Revolutionary Road (Kate and Leo in a movie directed by American Beauty's Sam Mendes?! Should've been knock your socks off awesome. But the sadness of the movie just weighed me down. Unlike Precious, where awful things happen to this person but that person overcomes it all, the couple in this movie just let the bad things destroy them and the movie ended miserably.)

Least Favorites:
Inkheart
Confessions of a Shopaholic
The Informant!
Where the Wild Things Are
Knowing
Coraline
Seven Pounds (One of the worst movies I've seen of all time.)
Changeling
Frozen River
The Searchers


And that's my little list from 2009, my year of the movies. We'll see how 2010's movies stack up. :)