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Fort Bliss (2014)
You Can't Handle the Truth
A wonderful but heartbreaking little gem, with Michelle Monaghan turning in a world-class performance not unlike Emily Blunt's in Edge of Tomorrow. God, can she be tough, especially in the scenes where she goes toe to toe with fellow soldiers--not all of whom are, shall we say, evolved. Speaking of evolved, the scenes of development between her and her son are first-rate, and the kid is remarkable (unless, like Shirley Temple, the director told him his puppy had just died before his big scenes.) From my own experience with the new and improved all-volunteer army as well as with the Vietnam era Big Green Machine, I think the writer-director absolutely nailed the catch-22 world in which the troops find themselves. Torn between loyalty to family and duty, the insatiable demands of a too-small force with too many endless missions, and everybody, from the beleaguered O-3 who has lost his own family to the squad leader E-5 who sees only his own selfish need, without a clue to the dueling pressures upon his platoon sergeant.
This movie, little as it is, forces us to really see the consequences of what we blithely demand of those few poor enough, idealistic enough, or loyal enough to sign up for what turns out not to be the gateway to a better life but rather an endless treadmill that grinds them and their loved ones up while the rest of us sit back here with our stupid yellow ribbon car magnets and "thank them for their service." This movie should be required viewing in Congress and the White House.
The Lunchbox (2013)
Sad on So Many Levels, but wait....
We just watched this on Netflix and thank goodness the whole thing is subtitled--even the English. Saddest thing of all is the Oscar controversy in which the Indian Committee is apparently so obsessed with the infallibility of their lunch delivery service that they failed to nominate the film. As the lunchwalla indignantly protests: both Harvard University and the King of England have certified the system. So there! So no Oscar for India.
Never mind the fact that the three stars are wonderful, the setting makes clear the poignancy and quiet desperation of their lives, and the whole story is a quiet little gem that, gasp!!, demands patience, attention, and imagination. We certainly can't ask that of audiences, can we? Hence the complaints that good wives wouldn't act that way, it ends too abruptly, etc. That's called fiction, and that's called a cliffhanger.
So we can each build our own story, whether happy ending or not, although we are offered hints:
The eager apprentice gets married and gets the soul-crushing job he yearned for---or does he chuck it all and start his own restaurant?
The Good Wife does indeed run off with her adorable daughter to the Big Rock Candy Mountain with a five to one exchange rate and maybe starts her own restaurant.
the retired civil servant organizes the local kids into a youth cricket league and makes a fortune cultivating players for Major League Baseball (we know he doesn't retire to the village after seeing that it causes arthritis.)
Or maybe he joins forces with the Indian Oscar Committee to give the lunch delivery system and Oscar nomination process the same dazzling efficiency we see on display in the Government Claims Department.
So then, why is he among the people he is in the last scene, going where he is going? Maybe there's a happy ending after all in Lunchbox Part Deux.
Interstellar (2014)
Are We There Yet?
OK, so I had the great good fortune to see Kubrick's "2001" when it first came out, and you didn't: so this is what 50 years of CGI has brought us. Everything is possible technically so nothing can astonish us anymore, and this derivative forced march tries to bludgeon us into submission with blatant theft from Ken Burns' Dust Bowl to maudlin appeals to the emotion of loss of children or parents to science gibberish that makes our heads hurt. At least 60s hippies had pot to explain their reaction to 2001, while you could spend an evening of Trivial Pursuit listing all the pop movies from which this one steals--circular space station on which we now live, check; secretive but benevolent NASA, check; suspiciously solicitous robots, check; crazed astronauts, check, trippy special effects, check. And if you want to see whom our hotshot Lincoln pitchman is trying to channel, check out Sam Sheppard as Chuck Yeager in "The Right Stuff." Just because you never saw or have forgotten the pioneers, doesn't mean the latest blockbuster is the last word in genius. Ask yourself: 50 years from now, will you remember seeing this the way people remember first seeing "2001" or even "Star Wars?" Thought so.
A Most Wanted Man (2014)
That's What Its Really All About
So not enough crazed snipers, massive explosions, shoot-em-up scenes for you? Go back to Lucy or James Bond. Hoffman is of course great although my wife wasn't as impressed with his "Germanism" as I. Rachel McAdams also did a fine job despite what the juvenile chat boards think. And Hamburg was just terrific in all its gritty grungy splendor. Not a big LeCarre fan but this one was just pitch-perfect from the weaselly bureaucratic BKA/LKA cop (or was he the Interior Minister? BFS/LFS? No, probably a Hamburg State cop.) through Hoffman's loyal team to the world-weary and cynical CIA officer (Robin Wright)who may have double-crossed him in the end. Like "The Lives of Others" lots of techno toys, but the whole recruitment/management tradecraft rang true, especially the way Hoffman played the young Middle Easterner. Wait til you see who he turns out to be. So drink a cup of coffee, get ready to watch masters at work, and TRY TO STAY AWAKE AND PAY ATTENTION.
One, Two, Three (1961)
Even the German Is Funny
sure its old, and sure most people have even forgotten that there were two Germanies, but its a forgotten classic. And since Wilder used lots of German actors, even the dialogue he didn't bother to translate is hilarious: two particularly funny scenes were the Vopos interviewing Otto about his "wedding present" and the Stasi torture scene--who wouldn't crack after days of "itsy bitsy teeny weeny yellow polka-dot bikini." Too bad most viewers won't recognize the old posters slipping out of the picture frame in the table-top dance scene, or the million other topical references. Its like a post-graduate seminar on cold war Berlin. And if that ain't enough, remember "Good-Bye Lenin?" Their Coca-Cola scene is an outright homage, right down to the Building the "new' movie chose as Coke's Berlin headquarters. Look familiar?
The Last Ship (2014)
If You Play WithTheir Toys, You Follow Their Rules
Jeez Louise, its just a TV show. The difference between "The Final Countdown" and "Under Siege" was that you saw the real Nimitz, but not the real Missouri, because the US Navy wouldn't lend its toys to people who wanted to depict EXOs as homicidal maniacs (aka Gary Busey.) As my wife reminds when I criticize movies or shows: "its just a movie, not real life." And its not helpful to complain that O-5s can't be captains or something doesn't "phase" (sic!) them but then nit-pick anyway. So here's my big nit: What's wrong with the tagline: "Never Waiver (again sic!)." Don't they have spell-check or is everybody here a high-school drop-out? Or can't they change the promo? Rhona Mitra and Eric Danes are always worth watching, as is the wonderful Adam Baldwin (aka Casey from "Chuck.") And the rest of the troops are fine too. If you like Tom Clancy's techno-thrillers, then just sit back and enjoy the show instead of "counting rivets" and complaining. Sure the troops are disciplined and competent but its better than watching superwoman Rihanna in "Battleship." So what's wrong with disciplined competence? Don't you think most folks in the "old" or new volunteer military are? Would it be more fun to watch people devolve into "Lord of the Flies" anarchy like that show with Scott, Andre, and the rogue submarine in Tahiti. No, I can't remember the title either, which is sorta my point. I will confess I didn't finish the book, for the general air of stately melancholy finally wore me down, but its an intriguing concept. Give it a fair shot.