Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close (Stephen Daldry, 2011)

Click here for the basics

Rating: Q=4, P=3 / Thanks But No Thanks

Scale 1=3, Scale 2=1, Scale 3=2, Scale 4=1

9/11, Complex Relationships, Grieving, Journey

Hmm... I was skeptical going into this film because of the reception I'd heard and reviews I'd read. So, I was glad I liked it more than I thought I would. The best part of this film is the acting, the worst is the story itself. To make a film about such a serious and communal event is difficult enough- adding a quest with a complicated lead character creates such an imbalance it just doesn't work. I knew what was going to happen -and sometimes that was good- and there was too much emphasis on the wrong elements. I believed the mother's story most and, thankfully, by the very end the film starts to focus on her strained relationship with her son. The mother-son relationship had the most emotional and believable impact and, in my opinion, should have been the center of the film. Mixed feelings, overall.

--Don't understand the ratings? Click here

SPECIAL: Love Story List

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, I thought it only fitting to compile a list of some favorite romantic movies- from Hollywood classic screwball comedies, fairy tales, contemporary dramas, to odd-couple independents. For me, the best love stories are ones that we can believe but are set in a different, unreal place. The stories should be whimsical and fantastical, to some degree, but the characters should feel like people we've met or would one day hope to meet. That is what romance is: an escape from reality… but one that ultimately makes you feel more content about reality. Whether consciously or not. Sometimes they are stories of chivalry and courage. Sometimes they are melodramatic and painfully sentimental. One definition of romance I particularly like: “an emotional attraction or aura belonging to an especially heroic era, adventure, or activity,” is a fitting description of all truly great films. So, perhaps, all films are romantic.

Romance as a film genre refers to films that center on romance, emotion, and passion. They are stories about relationships -often one particular relationship- and the journey of being or falling in love. They usually make us cry a little (or a lot) and tend to end happily or at least hopefully.

A great romantic film, in my opinion, shouldn’t only be romantic. For example, Amelie, one of my absolute favorite films, is certainly a romance but it is also a tale of self-discovery, an adventure, a collage of wit, whimsy, and fantasy. After all, the original title is Le fabuleux destin d'Amélie Poulain.

This is a film I've seen over and over. Each time I watch I want to be Amelie and fall in love with Nino, courting him with little puzzles and notes. I want secret stratagems.

The top 10, according to The American Film Institute, are:

• Casablanca
• Gone with the Wind
• West Side Story
• Roman Holiday
• An Affair To Remember
• The Way We Were
• Doctor Zhivago
• It’s A Wonderful Life
• Love Story
• City Lights

I certainly agree that these films have earned their place at the top. I have a hard time coming up with a more timeless romance than Casablanca. They are all romantic, timeless, and ever-enriching American culture. But my personal favorites don’t start showing up until further along.

The Classics

The Lady Eve shows up at number #26 on AFI’s list and this film is, in my opinion, the best screwball comedy ever made. A screwball comedy is one that usually deals with farcical situations, social class divisions, and has lots of witty dialogue. Most also center around a relationship that seems mismatched. Starring Barbara Stanwyck and Henry Fonda, the film follows the shenanigans of a con-artist and the rich intellectual she at first tries to swindle and then hopes to snatch.

Two other screwball comedies I love appear on the list, as well: It Happened One Night (#38) and The Philadelphia Story (#44). Both have fabulous dialogue and are still very funny over 70 years later.

Another favorite, Ball of Fire, doesn't make their list but it makes mine. I love this film- timeless but incredibly time specific. Similar to The Lady Eve, Ball of Fire brings together an intellectual and a club dancer in a rather silly but believable way. The jazz-age culture and slang makes me love it –if you’re also into jazz-age stuff check out Song of the Thin Man - and the romance is subtle and perfectly acted.

While in school, I took a course on the films of Howard Hawks. A comparison was made between Casablanca and Hawk’s classic To Have and Have Not (#60). Similar in concept and plot, the one thing that To Have and Have Not has that Casablanca doesn't have is wit. Don’t get me wrong, I love Casablanca but it is almost too sentimental for me. The wit, humor, and sharp dialogue of To Have and Have Not are much more my style and the romance acted by Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall is… for obvious reasons… much less acted.

If you like more talk and less sweeping music with nostalgic scenes, you’ll probably like The Apartment (#62). The first time I watched this film, I was left in a daze. Is it possible to write lines that good? This film is a romance of words.

On the other hand, if you prefer the sweeping music and like plots that take on a grander setting with more conflicts, I can’t recommend any more highly than Out of Africa. This is not just a romance between two lonely people it is also a romance with landscape and lifestyle. Meryl Streep’s performance is one of the best.

Foreign Romance

I could go on and on about classic Hollywood romances but I'll stop now. If you prefer more exotic, unusual, or steamier romances, then I suggest heading to the broadly named “Foreign” film section. Most of the following suggestions are not just romantic but also strange and mind-bending. Sex and Lucia, for example, is a film about a writer whose novel and reality seem to mix together. It is a fantastic –maybe even disturbing- story. In Live Flesh, and practically all the films by the brilliant Pedro Almodovar, love and relationships are combined with violence, crime, and suspense. In a way, this is a less romantic and more romantic-thriller.

Here are a few more favorites:

A Very Long Engagement

Children of the Century –very steamy, as films about writers often are

Cinema Paradiso

Like Water for Chocolate

Lovers of the Arctic Circle

Nowhere in Africa –romance is not at the center of this film, but it is a powerful force

Misfit Romance

I have a particular weakness for romantic comedies that involve misfits. I like to see two outsiders come together and make a better life, learn to cope, or make an impact on others. There are so many great films that do this. Harold and Maude (#69) is a cult classic. I distinctly remember the absolute feeling of elation I had after seeing this movie for the first time. It was literally like walking on air. So powerful.

Chocolat is my favorite fairy tale film. In fact, it even starts with the lines “Once upon a time…” The couple in this film is as good as it gets- confident, flirtatious, and beautiful.

But, I guess my all time favorite romantic film has to be Benny and Joon. It is heart-warming, silly, relevant, quirky, dramatic in all the right ways, and it features incredible performances by Johnny Depp and Mary Stuart Masterson. This film will keep you young at heart and inspire you to love deeply no matter the costs and regardless of what others think.

Get out those tissues! Happy watching-

To Be And To Have

To Be And To Have (Nicolas Philibert, 2002)

Click here for the basics

Q=6*, P=8 / Comfy Old Standard

Scale 1=2, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=4, Scale 4=4

*Please keep in mind that Q scores for documentaries should be interpreted differently as this genre usually does not involve acting or the same theatrical elements.

Documentary, French language, Teaching, Changing Times, Heartfelt

From the very first scenes of this film I was in love. I usually enjoy documentaries and especially ones that are quiet and subtle. This is one that simply follows the daily life of a one-room school in rural France over the course of one year. It is so poignant and heartfelt it brings me to tears and makes me want nothing more than to teach. There are many things this film can teach us all about patience, growth, changing times, and passion.

The Descendants & Tree of Life

The Descendants (Alexander Payne, 2011)

Click here for the basics

Q=7, P=6 / Can't Get Enough

Scale 1=3, Scale 2=4, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=3

Complex Relationships, Death & Grief, Hawaii, Parenting

An emotional story told in a simple and natural way. The Descendants takes serious issues -death, grieving, way of life, land, trust- and discusses it with a touch of humor, moving performances, and poignant pauses. Yes, the film is about grieving in its many stages, but it is also about parenting and adjusting priorities. It is a reminder of how we often view relationships as insignificant or troublesome when in them. We take them for granted until the moment comes when we alone must decide to hold on or let go.

Tree of Life (Terrence Malick, 2011)

Click here for the basics

Q=7, P=5 / Can't Get Enough

Scale 1=4, Scale 2=3, Scale 3=3, Scale 4=2

Philosophical, Vivid Artistry, Spiritual, Family

This film is profound in many ways. Immediately, I was reminded of Stanley Kubrick's intense and complex 2001: A Space Odyssey. But, as Rogert Ebert writes, Tree of Life is more emotional. I was captivated by the more obviously narrative parts of this film and how the camera acted like memory: short and blinking as a toddler, longer and more dramatic as a child, reflective as an adult. It is beautiful. Some of the writing and concept, however, seemed to try too hard (especially in the early and late sequences) but it wasn't enough to destroy anything. Visually-stunning, it is hard to deny this film isn't simply gorgeous: the sun-dappled branches of trees, the billowing lace curtains in the windows, the cosmic paintings scattered throughout. If you like artistic/philosophical filmmaking -Baraka, Koyaanisqatsi- you might enjoy this film.