Initial opinion:
It was better than I’d anticipated in all categories, except for acting. I was not drawn to or compelled by any of the characters.

Highlights:

• The screenplay
• The beautiful cinematography, including a long and brilliant single-shot war sequence on and around the beach
• The original score
• Keira Knightley’s green dress (although she REALLY needs to eat a few sandwiches)
• The brief yet impactful appearance of Vanessa Redgrave at the end of the film

Do you need to see it in the theater before the Oscars on Sunday? Only if you’re the kind of person that likes to have seen all Best Picture nominees before the trophies are doled out. Otherwise, it will be a great rental. And tell your husbands and boyfriends that it is not a chick flick; a large portion of the movie focuses on a soldier at war.

Last week, we celebrated Valentine’s Day by immersing ourselves in an evening of pop culture history; we went to see Carrie Fisher’s one-woman show, “Wishful Drinking.”

Carrie Fisher is very engaging and funny, and appropriately self-deprecating.  I soaked in all of her anecdotes like a sponge, and loved every minute of it. If and when her show comes to your town, I highly recommend it.  In the meantime, go read or rent Postcards from the Edge. Talk about a great primer…

I have supported the Writers Guild of America Strike from Day 1 and will continue to do so until it is resolved on their terms. I support the writers as a film & TV fan standing strong on the sidelines cheering them on as they fight for the compensation that they deserve.

My TiVO may be empty, but my heart remains on the picket line.

Ugh. That was my reaction upon hearing that, and it hurts me to say this out loud, the Oscar-winning film Crash is going to be made into a cable television series. It didn’t work on the big screen, and I doubt it will work on the small one.

The
TV show for Starz will be co-written and directed by original
helmer/screenwriter Paul Haggis, and Don Cheadle is the only film
character who has signed up for this version thus far.

To this day, my distaste for Crash and the inexplicable Oscar victory that followed still lingers like garlic on day two. Yuck.

I stand by my assertion that Brokeback Mountain should have earned the golden statue instead of Crash, and it will go down in history as one of the best motion pictures of all time. Both were controversial and important, but only one was groundbreaking and meaningful.

Let’s open up the floodgates…will you watch the show? Did you love the film? Be honest. I can take it.

Last night we watched La Vie En Rose, and I understood immediately why Marion Cotillard was nominated for Best Actress. The film itself is uneven and a tad boring, but Cotillard’s physical transformation into legendary French singer Edith Piaf is stunning. Piaf’s life was short and tragic, and Cotillard’s portrayal of the troubled star is phenomenal.

Next up, No Country For Old Men at the theater and Away From Her on DVD.

Quantum of Solace. That is the title of the next 007 film. I liked it better when it was simply Bond 22. I’m sure the film will kick ass, much like Casino Royale did. So I suppose a questionably lame title will suffice.

I’m sure that both the new Indy and the new Bond films will also rake it in this year, and I admit that I will be among the masses clamoring for tickets to both when they open.