Review Roundup: Brothers, A Single Man, Nine

As 2009 was quickly coming to an end I made  an effort to catch up with some films before the year’s end. Here are some quick thoughts on 3 pictures I caught up with.

Brothers: Never judge a movie by the trailer. The trailer for Jim Sheridan’s “Brothers” was among one of the worst I saw this year. The trailer made the film come across like melodramatic trash. After hearing some good things about the picture I decided to give it a chance. This is a film that I think everybody should check out.

The film is based on the 2004 Danish film of the same name. The story focuses on Tobey Maguire, a marine who is presumed dead during a mission in Afghanistan. The loss of Maguire hits his family back home hard. As a result, Maguire’s wife, played by Natalie Portman, starts to grow emotionally close to Maguire’s ex-con brother, Jake Gyllenhaal. Things get complicated when Maguire returns back home. This is not a spoiler; the movie’s advertising reveals this.

Sheridan does a great job of creating a family dynamic that you can believe. We feel the pain that this family is going through. The film never dwells on over-the-top melodramatic moments. Don’t let the trailer fool you, there are some real nice quite moments in the film that let it breathe.

Maguire, Gyllenhaal, and Portman all deliver some of their finest work to date. Gyllenhaal is the best of the three. He’s entirely convincing as the black sheep of the family who tries to make things right by helping his brother’s family. There is a real nice scene between him and his father (Sam Shepard) in the kitchen where the silence speaks volumes about the problems the two have gone through. The actors deliver the emotional moments without going for big acting. However, Maguire towards the end of the film does dive into big acting. His buggy eyes were troublesome. This film was a real nice surprise. Check it out.

3 1/2 stars

A Single Man: This is an impressive directorial debut from fashion designer Tom Ford. Based on the 1960′s book of the same name, Colin Firth plays a middle-aged college professor living in 1962′s Los Angeles. He is suffering over the loss of his lover, played in flashbacks by Matthew Goode.

Firth is fantastic here. It’s hard for an actor to convey all sorts of feelings just through one’s face. Firth is able to pull this off perfectly. On the outside he is a proper Englishman, but there is a lot of hurt beneath the surface. The only time we get to see that mask torn down is when he gets the phone call telling him his partner is dead. He maintains his composure through the call, but after he hangs up, it collapses. No dialogue is necessary to convey the heartbreak he is going through.

Throughout the film we follow Firth as he encounters one of his students (Nicholas Hoult) who may have a thing for him. We also meet his former lover and friend, played by Julianne Moore, who does her best to comfort Firth. The two spend a drunken night thinking about the past and the future . I think Moore is good in the film as a British boozehound. Though, I’m not sure if she deserves the award talk surrounding her performance.

Ford has a great eye for visuals. Everything in the picture from the camera angles, the framing,and the music is all laid out perfectly on-screen. The meticulous nature of the film aesthetic is used to represent how Firth leads his life. While Firth keeps up a proper appearance, Ford uses the imagery to convey the desire that he feels toward the male form. The great cinematography by Eduard Grau perfectly captures the 1960′s. A great performance, and great visuals make this film one to see.

3 1/2 stars

Nine: I must admit that I was looking forward to this film. A film based on the great Fellini film “8 1/2,” starring the great Daniel Day-Lewis and a line up of talented actress, how could it miss? It does.

The film is a musical version of Federico Fellini’s classic “8 1/2.” The plot of the film is essentially the same as Fellini’s film, but just with some musical numbers thrown in. Daniel Day-Lewis plays Italian director Guido Contini. He is a a man facing deep troubles in his life. He is near ready to shoot a film, but without a script. The women in Guido’s life come in and out of the film as he confronts the professional and personal issues in his life.

This isn’t a very good musical. The songs are just plain bad. The only song that is memorable is “Be Italian.” The other song I did enjoy was one called “Cinema Italiano,” which is sung by Kate Hudson. There’s something catchy about the song, even though I admit it’s bad. It doesn’t help that the actors, except for Fergie, can’t sing at all. Penelope Cruz, playing Guido’s mistress, is horrible during her musical number. She is sexy to look at, but I don’t know what the fuck she is singing about. Even though the actors can’t sing, I did find some enjoyment in that.

I like what Roger Ebert said about the film’s quality of stars. He says though the film may be full of big stars, none of them are actual characters. The only one of the ladies who is actually able to create a character is Marion Cotillard. She is great as the betrayed wife of Guido. Cotillard is able to make us sympathize with her during her brief time on screen.

I found the musical numbers boring because the director Rob Marshall, never takes advantage of the cinematic medium he is working in. The film is based on a stage musical, so many of the films musical sequences are theatrical. But this isn’t the theatre. It’s tiresome to see numerous musical number take place on an actual stage. Lewis is good as Guido, but he’s a no better singer than some of the ladies. I was surprised that this film didn’t bring together all these actors together in one big musical number. The film doesn’t even try to replicate the famous harem scene from the original “8 1/2.” That was a big letdown. The opening and closing curtain calls of the film are well done. No singing is required by any of the leads during those moments. This is an interesting film, but a lot of potential was wasted.

2 1/2 stars

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