Movies!

Here's a rundown of what I've been watching lately:

Four Last Songs is a movie that I don't remember why I put in my queue. I just did some poking around on Netflix, trying to find out if it was recommended because I liked something else, and I came up with nothing. At any rate, it tells the story of Larry, an American pianist living on an island in the Mediterranean. He's a decent pianist, but longs to do something special with his life, so he works to arrange a concert of music by this genius composer who lived on the island. Most of the movie is him running around, desperately trying to keep the concert from falling apart. The composer's wife and mistress are at odds with each other, Larry's girlfriend thinks he's cheating on her, and the island's self-appointed sycophant keeps getting in Larry's way. I don't really like movies where people continuously feel uncomfortable or on edge, and that's what Larry does for the first half of the movie. And if that weren't enough, lots of clichéd plot devices are thrown in to make the movie extra fun. First, there's the daughter who's come searching for the father she's never known, and then there's the man who's dying of cancer who just wants to live out his last 3 months of life in peace. Not nearly enough attention is paid to either the beautiful island or the music of the composer, both which appear to be beautiful but aren't used to the movie's advantage.

Rating: 2 stars out of 5

World Trade Center. Hoo, boy, I'm not even sure where to really start with this one. I was looking for a movie about 9/11 to use in the class I'm teaching this fall, and this seemed like a good place to start. It's a very straightforward story of 2 policemen who get trapped under the World Trade Center after it collapses on September 11, 2001. The movie shows their families struggling to control their worry, and generally portrays both these men and their families as heroes. But the focus of the movie seemed odd to me--these were two men who didn't have a chance to rescue anyone (although they certainly wanted to). If you're going to show heroes, why not make a movie about those who dug out these two men? They risked life and limb for them, knowing full well that the pile of rubble might collapse on them at any minute, trapping them as well. I also think that if this weren't a movie about 9/11, critics would be a lot harsher about some of the corny images. One of the policemen's wife's floating head, giving him inspiration? The other one, hallucinating that Jesus is bringing him water? But critics don't say anything about this; instead, they talk about how sensitive the movie is and how genuine the feelings are. Even as I'm writing this blurb, I'm feeling slightly guilty about what I'm saying, since I definitely don't want to mock or lessen what anyone went through during this tragedy. Perhaps the most accurate thing to say, then, is that it's too soon for a movie based on real people during 9/11. For better or worse, we are not yet far enough removed from this tragedy to be objective about how it is portrayed in film.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

As I'm writing these reviews, I'm realizing that this was a pretty lousy batch of movies. Aeon Flux is last on the list, and although it was fun to watch, it certainly wasn't anything to write home about (and yet what am I doing?). I like sci-fi films, for the most part, and so I think that made this movie a lot more accessible for me; if this isn't a genre that you enjoy, you probably won't like the movie. The plot is pretty straight-forward, with good suspense to keep things moving. There are plenty of unanswered questions that drive the plot forward, and for the most part, they are wrapped up neatly at the end. Charlize Theron's action sequences are pretty cool, although her friend who has hands instead of feet is weird and kind of creepy. It's unfortunate, because the film doesn't really take advantage of Theron's acting abilities--most of the time, she just has this very direct, "don't-mess-with-me" sort of look on her face. It would have been nice to see a little more emotional vulnerability or even personality behind this amazing assassin facade.

Rating: 3 stars out of 5