Sideways and Closer
A little movie review time (in my humble opinion).
Sideways: I don't know exactly what I expected from this movie, what with all the hype and buzz about it, but I have to admit I was a tad bored. The acting was great, Thomas Hayden Church did a great job with his character, I really did believe he was a huge cad with a huger heart when it came to his friends, and I was completely depressed by what's his butts' character, so they got me there! I enjoyed the cinematography - it was beautifully filmed. Wine country is a gorgeous place though, not sure how you could go wrong there. I learned a lot about wine, though I'm not a huge fan of it.. and I love it when Thomas got hit by the helmet and she broke his nose (but I'm giving it away, aren't I? Oh no, they showed it in the preview!). Problem? I had a hard time not picture him as the goofy Noel (Nole? Nowell?) on Wings! Remember that? I also felt it was about a 1/2 hour too long, I kept thinking - hurry up already, jeesh. The story line was ok, so overall I suppose I would give it a B-. (Remember, I'M NO EXPERT!).
Closer: I enjoyed this one more than Sideways. I actually liked it a lot more than I thought that I would. The acting was superb, I loved the twist at the end, I thought everyone did a phenomenal job. I am in LOVE with the soundtrack on this one. Julia Roberts was darker than usual, which I really enjoyed. It was a dark "romantic" type comedy with an ending that is unusual, and one that I didn't see coming - which I appreciate. I would have liked to have seen more on Julia Roberts husbands character, though his scene in the strip club was awesome. (If you haven't seen it - rent it, it's worth the $3.75). So, for this one, I'd say an A-.
As a side note: Dope Sick Love - HBO Documentary... This was VERY disturbing. HBO does such a wonderful job with all of their documentary type stories, and this one held my attention from beginning to end. Basically - the premise to this is two couples, both brought up in middle class to high class families, who end up living on the streets of New York, addicted to Heroin. It is a true documentary - there is no "commentary", no soundtrack, no scripts. You don't even hear from the filmmakers during the whole thing. It is simply the filmmakers following these two couples around for 18 months and watching their fall. It was sad, disturbing, funny at times - but mainly it was a reality check. Especially for those folks who have children. What with the wealthy gal asking her father for money EVERY DAY - and him continuing to comply with her outlandish requests. In his defense though, his thoughts are "I put this life into the world, I'm going to try every single day to improve her live". His efforts, however, are fruitless at best - as she continues to spend every dime he gives her on drugs for her and her boyfriend. It's very sad - she starts out as this beautiful young girl, and ends up with horrible skin, weighing no more than 90 lbs, and lost teeth. It was horrid, but riveting. I suggest everyone watch this documentary, it's a lesson well learned... especially if you're a drug user.
Ok - well that's it for Siesha's cinema corner... LOL Let me know if anyone has any additional comments! Have a fabulous day...
Sideways: I don't know exactly what I expected from this movie, what with all the hype and buzz about it, but I have to admit I was a tad bored. The acting was great, Thomas Hayden Church did a great job with his character, I really did believe he was a huge cad with a huger heart when it came to his friends, and I was completely depressed by what's his butts' character, so they got me there! I enjoyed the cinematography - it was beautifully filmed. Wine country is a gorgeous place though, not sure how you could go wrong there. I learned a lot about wine, though I'm not a huge fan of it.. and I love it when Thomas got hit by the helmet and she broke his nose (but I'm giving it away, aren't I? Oh no, they showed it in the preview!). Problem? I had a hard time not picture him as the goofy Noel (Nole? Nowell?) on Wings! Remember that? I also felt it was about a 1/2 hour too long, I kept thinking - hurry up already, jeesh. The story line was ok, so overall I suppose I would give it a B-. (Remember, I'M NO EXPERT!).
Closer: I enjoyed this one more than Sideways. I actually liked it a lot more than I thought that I would. The acting was superb, I loved the twist at the end, I thought everyone did a phenomenal job. I am in LOVE with the soundtrack on this one. Julia Roberts was darker than usual, which I really enjoyed. It was a dark "romantic" type comedy with an ending that is unusual, and one that I didn't see coming - which I appreciate. I would have liked to have seen more on Julia Roberts husbands character, though his scene in the strip club was awesome. (If you haven't seen it - rent it, it's worth the $3.75). So, for this one, I'd say an A-.
As a side note: Dope Sick Love - HBO Documentary... This was VERY disturbing. HBO does such a wonderful job with all of their documentary type stories, and this one held my attention from beginning to end. Basically - the premise to this is two couples, both brought up in middle class to high class families, who end up living on the streets of New York, addicted to Heroin. It is a true documentary - there is no "commentary", no soundtrack, no scripts. You don't even hear from the filmmakers during the whole thing. It is simply the filmmakers following these two couples around for 18 months and watching their fall. It was sad, disturbing, funny at times - but mainly it was a reality check. Especially for those folks who have children. What with the wealthy gal asking her father for money EVERY DAY - and him continuing to comply with her outlandish requests. In his defense though, his thoughts are "I put this life into the world, I'm going to try every single day to improve her live". His efforts, however, are fruitless at best - as she continues to spend every dime he gives her on drugs for her and her boyfriend. It's very sad - she starts out as this beautiful young girl, and ends up with horrible skin, weighing no more than 90 lbs, and lost teeth. It was horrid, but riveting. I suggest everyone watch this documentary, it's a lesson well learned... especially if you're a drug user.
Ok - well that's it for Siesha's cinema corner... LOL Let me know if anyone has any additional comments! Have a fabulous day...
