I watched some movies this week. Instead of doing individual reviews, I'm going to do some quick blurbs to keep things varied.
No: This excellent Chilean film portrays the "No" advertising campaign that lead to the downfall of dictator Pinochet. Gael Garcia Bernall is a fantastic lead, a quiet man with driving ambition. The popularization of political ideals runs deep, and the meditations on how advertising affects serious political issues is well done satire, but it never becomes overtly obvious or blunt. It'd be easy to call No the South American Mad Men, but the connections to the dictatorship and the subtle fear running throughout the film distinguish it.
Final Grade: A-
Moneyball: I like baseball, I like Brad Pitt, I like rebels, I kind of like statistics-- this movie seemed like it was made for me. Obviously this was a biopic of Billy Beane, but the various attitudes towards how to win in baseball were all explored well, particularly with Phillip Seymour Hoffman's character (the scenes between him and Pitt were some of the highlights of the movie). I thought it relied a bit too much on flashbacks to establish Pitt's character, but it's wildly successful in making such a niche subject an enjoyable film that anyone can appreciate.
Final Grade: B+
Winter's Bone: I watched this because the trailer made it look pretty. It was engaging throughout, and it does a fantastic job of portraying a community that's both beautiful and vicious (it kind of reminded me of Beasts of the Southern Wild). Jennifer Lawrence is outstanding. I can't imagine what it must have been like to have seen her for the first time. It's also an affecting family tale. Damn, it's bleak though. The cinematography does a great job at capturing the majesty of the backwoods of Missouri, which is a great contrast to the ugly things people are doing.
Final Grade: A
The Social Network: well I love this movie. Love it to death. This was the third time I've seen it and it was still just as good as the first time. This is one angry movie. The acting, the script by Sorkin, the fantastic score by Trent Reznor add up to a movie discontent with the modern age. This movie is so compulsively watchable-- I was seriously ready to watch it the night after. All the actors are top notch, but I want to mention Rooney Mara for making the most out of a small role that really sets the motivations of the film in the best of terms. Jesse Einsberg is incredible-- the anger and ambition that radiate out of him make the film's central question "is Mark Zuckerberg an asshole" really complicated. I might just watch it again and write a full essay-- that's how much I love it. The only movie that really rivals it for me from this decade is The Master.
Final Grade: A+
