The Ides Of March

http://idesofmarch-movie.com/

My loyal readers will be well aware by now of my well documented crush on Ryan Gosling. Therefore it was a given that I'd see The Ides Of March, even if it did look a bit dull and like it might hurt my brain with all the political speak. 

Seeing it however, proved to be more of a problem than I'd anticipated as it finished at my local Cineworld after only a week on release, and when I planned a trip to the next town (which has a bigger cinema) the week after, they stopped showing it too. Just when I'd given up completely and resigned myself to waiting for the DVD, my cinema buddy told me the Odeon had picked it up for one week only. 

The Ides Of March is essentially about a governor - Mike Morris (George Clooney - who also co-wrote and directed) who is running for presidency. One of his aides, Stephen (Ryan Gosling), is asked to meet with fellow aide who works for the opposition. Once he does, although nothing comes of the meeting, he feels compelled to tell the governor and is subsequently fired. But he soon learns something about the governor which makes him question the morals of the man who would be president. Something big enough that could stand Stephen in good stead if he chooses to use it. But as that would be as morally wrong as what the governor did, will he be able to make that choice?

The Ides Of March was pretty much what I expected it to be, a well acted and intriguing film. But I found myself pleasantly surprised by it too. It wasn't as dull as the trailer implied and wasn't so heavy on the political speak that it alienated me from the story. The performances are all excellent as you would expect from a cast including Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Paul Giamatti and Marisa Tomei and the direction is slick and well paced. I also think that when George Clooney directs himself it makes him a better actor!

The story flips between politics and the people behind the speeches and decisions and this is what stops it from being boring and keeps it interesting. A taut and intelligent film, not to be missed. 8.5 out of 10.

Viewing Date - 16th November 2011

UK Release Date - 28th October 2011 

Cast Overview:

Ryan Gosling ~ Stephen Meyers

George Clooney ~ Governor Mike Morris

Philip Seymour Hoffman ~ Paul Zara

Paul Giamatti ~ Tom Duffy

Evan Rachel Wood ~ Molly Stearns

Marisa Tomei ~ Ida Horowicz

Director ~ George Clooney

Writer(s) ~ George Clooney (Screenplay), Grant Heslov (Screenplay) and Beau Willimon (Screenplay - based on his play Farragut North)

Drive

http://drive.mgfilm.hr/

After the poor response I had to the supposedly excellent Crazy, Stupid, Love, my expectations on Drive went down somewhat. I still wanted to see it but I decided to try and reel in my excitement surrounding the film's potential until I'd seen it.

So along I went with the founding member of my Ryan Gosling appreciation society to see Drive. The story centers on a man (Ryan Gosling - you never find out his characters name) who does stunt driving for films. He also works as a mechanic and does some getaway driving on the side. He meets a girl, Irene (Carey Mulligan), who has a young son and a husband who's in prison. When the husband, Standard (Oscar Isaac), is released it puts paid to the driver and Irene's budding romance but the husband soon finds himself in trouble with local gangsters who he owes a debt to from his time in prison. The driver, having feelings for Standard's wife, wants to help him out of his tight spot and agrees to help him pull off one last job, robbing a pawn shop, to ensure his family's safety. 

I was hooked on Drive from the super stylish opening sequence where the driver does a getaway job for two local robbers. It was a tense opener with very little dialogue but it was executed to perfection and set the tone for the rest of the film.

Despite being the main character, the driver not only has no name, he also has very few lines in the film, with most of his feelings being played out through looks in the rear view mirror. Having said that the performances of Gosling and all of the other actors involved are faultless. The film is so grounded by the characters that when it does turn violent it's all the more shocking. 

The direction is slick and stylish but the film has a retro feel about it that stems from the music and the neon style font used in the opening and closing credits. Somehow these elements work really well together and I'm sure I'm not the only one who will come away from the film with the songs still in my head. The classical music used in the elevator scene (as seen in the trailer) is also very haunting and fits the scene perfectly.

Probably one which a lot of people won't see, but definitely one they should. 9 out of 10. 

Viewing Date - 6th October 2011

UK Release Date - 23rd September 2011

Cast Overview:

Ryan Gosling ~ Driver

Carey Mulligan ~ Irene

Bryan Cranston ~ Shannon

Albert Brooks ~ Bernie Rose

Oscar Isaac ~ Standard

Christina Hendricks ~ Blanche

Ron Perlman ~ Nino

Director ~ Nicholas Winding Refn

Writer(s) ~ Hossein Amini (Screenplay) and James Sallis (Book)

Crazy, Stupid, Love

http://crazystupidlove.warnerbros.com/index.html

I'm going to shock you all now by revealing yet another of my crushes, Ryan Gosling. I have no doubt that any girls reading this will not be surprised by this admission. And any guys reading will probably mumble something about 'pretty boy' or 'six pack'. Truth is Ryan is very pretty and boy does he have a fine six pack. But that's not what this review is about. The other truth is that while I openly admit to having a crush on Mr Gosling, rather than this being a recent thing owing to his prettiness or good abs, this is a crush that stems back to The Notebook and a certain scene in the rain that I someday hope to re-enact.

Admission made, it will be a further lack of surprise that I wanted to see this movie, along with Mr Gosling's other new film, Drive (which I will hopefully be seeing/reviewing over the weekend). What was surprising - to me at least - was the amount of recommendations I had about this film before I'd had chance to see it.

The movie opens on a not-so-romantic dinner for married couple Cal (Steve Carell) and Emily (Julianne Moore). He wants desert and she wants a divorce. Soon after Emily admits to having an affair with her co-worker and Cal moves out of the family home. Cal's life is on a downward spiral until he meets Jacob (Ryan Gosling), a self confessed ladies man who decides to mentor Cal and turn his life around. Cal has soon learnt all of the tricks Jacob has to show and is a huge hit with the ladies. Meanwhile Jacob finds the one thing he wasn't looking for, a girl who could be 'the one'.

Okay, so no surprises so far right? You ready for one? I didn't love Crazy, Stupid, Love half as much as I thought I would. I partially think the endless recommendations ruined any chance I had of loving this film as they raised the bar too high. I don't deny that it's a film that somewhat pushes the boundaries of the romantic comedy genre, and I don't deny that the performances are all great. I just felt like too much time was spent on the Cal/Emily story and not enough on Jacob and Hannah (Emma Stone).

I am a huge fan of Emma Stone (see, it's not all about Ryan!) and she was almost as underused in this as she was in Friends With Benefits, but at least in that movie there was an excuse for her underuse as her role was only a cameo. Her comic timing is impeccable (as witnessed in Easy A, seriously, if you haven't seen it please go and rent/buy it now!) and she should have been featured a LOT more than she was. Kevin Bacon is also woefully underused.

The other thing I felt went against this film was the trailer. As you will see below, the trailer clearly puts the emphasis on the relationship between the younger couple and this simply isn't the case with the film. Don't get me wrong, the Cal/Emily story is well told and acted as I said above, it's just not what I was there for. It was the more depressing of the two storylines and for me, could have been better balanced by having more of the Jacob/Hannah story.

I don't want to put people off as it is a good film. Just don't expect it to be hilarious because it's not, though it has got funny moments. And don't expect it to tug at your heart strings because it's not all that touching, though it has moments of clarity. Do expect to see a slightly more realistic take on marriage and a slightly less realistic take on guys who sleep around. 

It's one of the better films in a month of distinctly average rom-coms. 8* out of 10.

*It's more of a 7.8 but as I've only ever given whole or .5 scores I'm rounding up. It only just gets an 8!

Viewing Date - 28th September 2011

UK Release Date - 23rd September 2011

Cast Overview:

Steve Carell ~ Cal Weaver

Ryan Gosling ~ Jacob Palmer

Julianne Moore ~ Emily Weaver

Emma Stone ~ Hannah

Analeigh Tipton ~ Jessica

Jonah Bobo ~ Robbie Weaver

Marisa Tomei ~ Kate

John Carroll Lynch ~ Bernie Riley

Kevin Bacon ~ David Lindhagen

Liza Lapira ~ Liz

Director(s) ~ Glenn Ficarra and John Requa

Writer ~ Dan Fogelman

Blue Valentine

http://www.bluevalentinemovie.com/

As mentioned previously, I am a big fan of The Notebook. In developing a love of that film I also developed a fondness for it's stars Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling. And as such I tend to look forward to their up-coming projects. Blue Valentine is no exception to that rule. 


Blue Valentine had the added bonus of also starring Michelle Williams, who I've been a fan of since her Dawson's Creek days. I was eagerly anticipating the film's release when I read a fascinating interview with Ms Williams in Empire Magazine (http://tinyurl.com/6hq9toh). In the interview Williams talks about how committed she'd been to telling this story, ever since she first read the script when she was in her early 20s*. The interview also sheds light on the director's methods of enabling his actors to get to know each other well enough to hate each other. Williams explains how she and Gosling prepared for their roles by living together for a month, in between filming, in order to find out what would annoy them about each other if they were a real couple. For example, what would make them argue etc.


By the time the film's release date came around, it was obvious that none of the cinemas in my town (or surrounding area) were going to be showing it. I find it's always the way with the ones you REALLY want to see! Thankfully I have an amazing best friend who not only wanted to see the film, but also didn't mind taking time out of her Valentines Day plans to go to London, and see the film with me at the delightful Prince Charles Cinema.


The film flips between present day bitterness and the bittersweet early days of Cindy and Dean. They met by chance when he was working for a removal firm, moving an elderly man into a home. She happened to be visiting her grandmother at the same home on the same day. As Cindy had a boyfriend, she turned down Dean's offer of a date. They meet again a month later when Cindy has become disillusioned with said boyfriend and decides to give Dean a chance. In between these flashes of the past we also see Dean and Cindy as they are now, embittered and worn down by life, family, jobs and each other. The film continues to switch between Cindy and Dean then, getting to know each other and falling in love, to now, knowing too much about the other person and falling out of love. 


While I concede that this is not the cheeriest of films, I thought it did accurately portray the way that people drift apart and how sometimes, love just isn't enough. The interwoven flashback scenes of how Dean and Cindy met and fell in love are so believable. So much so that I felt a little uncomfortable watching the more intimate scenes, as though I were peeking into a real couple's private life through a keyhole. This only speaks of how good Williams and Gosling are, and how much they put themselves into these characters. Their director clearly had method to his madness in having them live together during filming, as I'm sure it was this prolonged time together that made their performances so grounded in reality. 


I can't go so far as to say that the film was enjoyable, as watching two people fight for their love rarely is. But I will say that it was a fascinating insight into the lives of a realistic and thoughtfully portrayed (dis)functional couple. 8 out of 10.

*For the purpose of grasping how long writer/director Derek Cianfrance has been trying to get Blue Valentine made and released, Michelle Williams is now 30.

Viewing Date - 14th February 2011

UK Release Date - 14th January 2011

Cast Overview:

Ryan Gosling ~ Dean

Michelle Williams ~ Cindy

Faith Wladyka ~ Frankie

John Doman ~ Jerry

Mike Vogel ~ Bobby

Director/Writer ~ Derek Cianfrance

Writer ~ Cami Delavigne

Writer ~ Joey Curtis