50/50

Year: 2011
Director: Jonathan Levine
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick, Bryce Dallas Howard and Anjelica Huston

If you go into 50/50 thinking it's just going to be a really funny comedy with slight cancer undertones, I must warn you; you will be disappointed. That doesn't mean, however, the movie is bad. On the contrary, I think the fact that 50/50 was more on the drama (and dark comedy) side really made a more powerful statement than just a typical laugh out loud movie would have.

50/50 is really a heavy subject movie. You do have the cancer topic which is heavy in itself but on top of that you have various subjects that can come with cancer including, inevitably, death as well as relationship strains. It's unfortunate but this movie is very relatable to many people and it is this familiarness that makes for such a striking movie. It's also worth mentioning that 50/50 is loosely based off of the real life story of Will Reiser who was a co-writer on the movie and a good friend of Seth Rogen.

Acting wise it was spot on. I was originally worried about Seth Rogen's part. I love Rogen but in more comedies and was unsure how well he'd do in a more serious movie. So while he did play the comedic relief, which was to be expected, I do think he did a good job transitioning when he needed to. As for Gordon-Levitt...well he was spot on as usual and his dynamics throughout the movie were hauntingly real.

Overall 50/50 is a great move. It may not be the pick me up movie you want after a long and stressful week but it is well worth the watch.

Score: B+

The First Days Of Spring

Year: 2009
Director: Charlie Fink
Starring: Alex Barker, Alexandra Barker and Richard Franklin

Following up on a similar thematic pattern with my Girl Walk // All Day post with another movie set to song; The First Days of Spring. This time the music is a bit more...fitting I feel for a movie setting although not nearly as the lighthearted mood that Girl Walk // All Day was.


The First Days of Spring is also the name of the album of the same title by Noah and the Whale. Without getting too much into indie music, Noah and the Whale are an indie folk band from England. This movie is just what I described above, a movie set to their second album both entitled The First Days of Spring. As expected this is a fairly short movie at only 45 minutes. It also features very little actual dialogue in favor of open ended personal explanations and perhaps lyrical context.

This tree means something...I just know it.

I have watched this film a few times and I always try and make out what is really going on, as it is actually quite a confusing movie. It follows, what I think, is the same man but at three different points in his life. Teenage years, twenties and then in old age. I take a lot out of this movie and find it to be about true love but also lost love and regrets but also the importance of life itself and whatever life happens to throw your way. It's not necessarily a sad movie but parts of it are very sad but then it is countered with some very jubilant scenes. Some weird parts are thrown in and it is a very...artsy movie I suppose. Scene wise as it cuts between the three different times as well as features old vintage style movie shots and other stylistic shots.


Overall, The First Days of Spring is an interesting visual adaptation and partner to a great band's album and I urge all to watch it as you will take something from it.


Score: B

Texas Killing Fields

Year: 2011
Director:  Ami Canaan Mann
Starring: Sam Worthington, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Jessica Chastain, Chloe Grace Moretz

Texas Killing Fields is my unofficial "part two" of a Worthington and Chastain film. I came upon this and THE DEBT around the same time and so I decided to review them back to back.

This movie is hard to describe in terms of genre because the genre that it would traditionally be described as would take away from the movie's effectiveness. I suppose I would categorize it as a cop drama, but with way more plot depth than a typical cop drama would be. Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Sam Worthington play partners who are trying to solve a murder in their city, Texas City. They are also put into a obligated situation to help out Jessica Chastain (who works for another police department) with her missing persons - turned - homicide case. While the officers try to solve these crimes they are also going through things in their lives separately that dictates their actions and pushes them to certain breaking points.

For the second time in a row, I found myself actually enjoying another Sam Worthington acting job. I'm surprised. In both THE DEBT and this film, he seems to have found what he is good at in acting. He plays a blatant jerk who using violence and aggression to be a great cop. Along with his surprising performance was a solid "good cop" acting job by Jeffrey Dean Morgan who plays mature very well and Jessica Chastain who once again acts her heart out even though her character was not a focal point.



I liked this movie. I liked the pace of the movie and how the slowness of a Texan, Southern city reflected the tone of the movie. The writing was decent, but the plot and the story were powerful and at times disturbing.

Go see this film.

Score: B

The Debt

Year: 2010
Director: John Madden
Starring: Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain, Sam Worthington, Tom Wilkinson

The Debt was a product of one of my new favorite actresses, Jessica Chastain. I loved her in it, but I also really enjoyed the movie. The Debt is a espionage suspense thriller about three Jewish spies who attempt to kidnap a notorious Nazis surgeon and bring him back to Israel to stand trial for his crimes. The writing was pretty good as well as the directing, but what made the film for me was the acting. Obviously, Helen Mirren and Tom Wilkinson are great actors but I was most impressed with the aforementioned Jessica Chastain. She was pretty amazing in this film. She beautifully portrayed a young woman faced with capturing a man, alive, who was responsible for the death of so many of her people including her mother. Also I found myself actually liking the performance by Sam Worthington. I'm not a huge fan of his. Even though his movies are good, his acting has never impressed me. In The Debt I was surprised by his performance. I feel he is better suited for a secondary character role where he doesn't have to carry a movie.

The Debt was a pretty good movie. I was entertained throughout and was just in awe of Jessica Chastain. This movie acted it's way to a good review.

Score: B+

Bottle Rocket

Year: 1996
Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Owen Wilson, Luke Wilson, James Caan

If you read my review on Submarine you would notice I referred to my love of Wes Anderson quite a lot, so with the announcement of a new Wes Anderson film, Moonrise Kingdom, I decided to re-watch his films and do some reviews. And what better way to start than with his first film, Bottle Rocket.

This is the movie that started it all. Every distinguishable feature that Anderson employs started in Bottle Rocket and continues onto the rest of his film career. Now some do criticize Anderson for this apparent one dimension (as well as his typically dry sense of humor). I disagree with these claims as it's really just his style and it's a style that while not everyone "gets it", it works and is unique to him.

I will admit though that Bottle Rocket is perhaps one of my lowest rated Anderson Films although it may be tied with The Darjeeling Limited. It does have the typical quirky feel to it which I do love, but I think it's really the cast that gets to me. Own Wilson does good in his part as over enthusiastic and naive wannabe thief. I guess what I'm trying to get at is there was no real visible connection between the rest of the cast. Their respective storylines were great but just no connection to really care about the story as a whole. Luckily, I found the dry humor (my humor in general is pretty dry so guess that's why I appreciate it so much) to be excellent and does have a few scenes I would put at the top of any list.

Bottle Rocket may not be the home run that other Anderson films accomplished but it is a worthy watch if you love Anderson films and just the quirky "indie" (And I use that term sparingly) style that is prominent.

Score: B-