: a wild or uncultivated, usually upland region
It's official, if it wasn't already.
THE GREATEST TEAM OF ALL TIME.
A boatload of interesting movies this second weekend of August:
Hope Springs Could Meryl Streep earn yet another Oscar nomination for her portrayal of a long-married, disappointed woman caught in a rut with long-unfeeling husband Tommy Lee Jones? Streep and Jones are getting off-the-chart notices, and Steve Carell is getting good reviews in the straight role as the marriage counselor trying to bring the couple together again. Directed by David Frankel, who helmed Meryl in 2006's The Devil Wears Prada.
Verdict: Very Interested
The Campaign Long-term North Carolina congressman Will Ferrell faces off against bumbling, naive, wet-behind-the-ears candidate Zach Galifinakis in this political comedy from director Jay Roach (Meet the Parents, the Austin Powers movies and some fine HBO political movies, like Recount). Good reviews, timely, full of crude humor, of course, and starring two of the funniest, most unique comedians of our time.
Verdict: Very Interested
The Bourne Legacy Jeremy Renner replaces Matt Damon (seems like a fair substitution) in the fourth entry of the action series that, for me, just got more headache-inducing with each picture. Tony Gilroy, the screenwriter of the first three pictures, directs this time, replacing Paul Greengrass (thank God!). This time around, Robert Ludlum's indestructible hero is joined by a sterling cast: Edward Norton (as a villain), Rachel Weisz, and Stacy Keach. Albert Finney, Joan Allen, and David Strathairn reprise their roles too. The reviews are just a little above average; some critics are just tired of all the series and all the formula at play.
Verdict: Mildly Interested
2 Days in New York Julie Delpy both directs and stars in this romantic comedy, playing a French photographer whose life with her boyfriend (Chris Rock) is turned upside down when Delpy's father (played by Delpy's real-life papa), oversexed sister, and her sister's boyfriend come to spend the title amount of days with them. General chaos ensues. Delpy reprises a character she first played in the film 2 Days in Paris a couple years back. Generally positive reviews.
Verdict: Interested
Red Hook Summer Spike Lee's newest joint features The Wire's Clarke Peters in an acclaimed performance as a charismatic preacher who lives in a New York housing project who tries to convert his grandson, a mopey kid form middle-class Atlanta staying with him from the summer. The story takes some dark turns, and if the critics like the dynamic filmmaking, the energy, and ideas, they certainly don't like the preachiness.
Verdict: Mildly Interested
*
It's never too early to start thinking about Oscars. I haven't seen a lot of the 2012 films yet, but based on what I've read and the reviews, here are some of the films and performances that would nominated if the Oscars were announced today, approximately 2/3 of the way into the year.
Picture:
Moonrise Kingdom
Beasts of the Southern Wild (which Julia's mom says is fantastic)
Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
The Dark Knight Rises
Actor and Actress:
Meryl Streep, Hope Springs
Quvenzhane Wallis, Beasts of the Southern Wild
Rachel Weisz, The Deep Blue Sea
Michelle Williams, Take This Waltz
Jack Black, Bernie
Tommy Lee Jones, Hope Springs
Supporting Performances:
Matthew McConaughey, Magic Mike
Matthew McConaughey, Killer Joe
Emily Blunt, Your Sister's Sister
Maggie Smith, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Judi Dench, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Who knows? There are a lot of hyped performances and films to come, and, as usual, the best, most awaited films will come at the end of the year. Bill Murray, William H.Macy, Joaquin Phoenix, Julianne Moore (who shockingly doesn't have a shiny bald guy yet), Daniel Day-Lewis, Amy Adams, Woody Harrelson, Sally Field, Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway... oh, my!
*
It's time for an entry, an oldie, on the list of my 500 Greatest Performances of All Time:
Katharine Hepburn
as Susan in Bringing Up Baby (1938)
I'm not a big fan of Hepburn (I usually find her to be too much) but her resume, especially with comedy, is pretty imposing. In Howard Hawks' definitive screwball comedy, Kate is a dizzying, fast-talking ball of energy as a quick, flighty heiress driving paleontologist Cary Grant (who matches Kate step for step) bonkers. They don't make movies like this anymore. It's funny and so fast-paced and zany that at times you might think the film stock has been sped up. This was actually a bomb upon its release (it was during a period when Hepburn was considered box office poison), but its a charming example of a film the studios used to pump out like comic book actioners are today. It's an opportunity to see two brilliant stars, uniquely funny and stylish.
*
Book Review
This is the first novel by Daphne Du Maurier that I've read since I was assigned Rebecca in high school. This novel, which shares some of Rebecca's themes (obsession, fixation on the past, a moody romanticism that isn't always logical), pits Philip Ashley, an orphan who is raised by his uncle/soul mate/father figure/best friend on a sprawling estate in west Cornwall, against his cousin Rachel, the woman who lived with his uncle during his uncle's final years abroad in the Mediterranean and, Philip suspects, had a hand in his suspicious death. When Rachel comes to live with Philip, his initial mistrust and contempt for her quickly turns into infatuation and love for her. Is she aware of the effect she is having on him? And what's behind his headaches?
It's a mystery and a good one - we're never quite sure if Rachel is the villain or a misunderstood figure to be pitied. Philip is compelling, too, and if I never quite bought the sudden transformation in his feelings for Rachel, he was a well-drawn character. DuMaurier's prose isn't stiff, but, rather, intelligent, and her descriptive powers are impressive. The doom-filled ending bears the trace of the inevitable.
(****)
Images:
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