Since I was fortunate to have last Monday off from work for President's Day and my husband was well, not so fortunate and thus had to get himself to school, I took the afternoon and treated myself to my favorite past-time, a matinee flick!
To be perfectly honest, when I arrived at the Ballston theatre I had no idea what I wanted to see or even more important, what was playing. But I walked up and got in the customer service line and asked to see the next showing of Crazy Heart. As luck would have it, it was 12 o'clock and the show was starting in merely 15 minutes. It seemed I had timed this perfectly, and without even trying. For those of you who know me, I absolutely hate to be late, really for anything, but especially for movies (I'm a big fan of previews, for obvious reasons, and well, I also REALLY like to see the entire film, from beginning to end). In any event, lucky for me, this had worked out perfectly.
Crazy Heart is one of those "fly-under-the-radar-too-good-to-miss" flicks that somehow never garners the attention it so rightfully deserves. Chronicling the life of a down-and-out has-been country singer, the film showcases the vocal stylings of Jeff Bridges and shows us a deeply humanizing side of Bad Blake, a gruff aging star, as he struggles to find meaning in his life and get back on top in the industry.
Arguably one of the best male actors of our time, Bridges truely succeeds in this one. A role vaguely reminiscient of The Big Lebowski's, the Dude; Bridges bring us a down-trodden, yet at the same time, resilient man, stumbling through the endless days and nights.
Coming along on part of his journey is Jean, a single mother from Oklahoma, some 30 years his junior. A down-home, brunette beauty, played by Maggie Gyllenhaal (Jake Gyllenhaal of Brokeback Mountain fame), she takes his hand and reintroduces him to a life off the road for a change. Unfortunately for him (and for us!) her time in the film is somewhat cut short. Following an incident involving her 4-year-old son, Bad is forced to recognize his weakness and suffers the pain of Jean's departure.
Interwined in the slow-moving film, somewhat reminiscent of No Country for Old Men (without the over-the-top violence) we are fortunate to hear the musical stylings of Bad Blake, while witnessing the human drama of a man struggling to get back on top.
As a very welcome surprise, we are treated to the addition of Colin Farrell, playing Bad's former protege, Tommy Sweet. Farrell's portrayal of Sweet, student turned master, far out selling Bad these days, is an honest and welcome addition to the plot line. Not knowing if this was purposeful or not, surprisingly Farrell did not receive top-billing for this role. But in this blogger's humble opinion, a good move and a refreshing role for Farrell.
Though not nominated for Best Picture, Crazy Heart has garnered a total of three Oscar nominations, including a Best Actor nod for Bridges. Definitely a worth-while film, entertaining and inspiring.
The Bee Charmer Rating: B+
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Beginning
Hi. I'm not really sure how to start this, so I guess I will just start. So here goes.
Truth be told, I reserved this blog space back in May 2009, gave it a name, and then subsequently failed to actually write it. That said, following a really deep, heartfelt, and frankly, difficult conversation with my husband last night I've decided to take "the plunge" as they say and finally get this blog started.
By way of background information on me (for those few who may actually be interested), I am currently residing in Arlington, VA. My husband, "DoubleB" (as I will refer to him to maintain some level of anynomity since I've not actually asked him for permission to be blogged about), is currently a law school student. We celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary on November 1, 2009. In many ways we are polar opposites in the way of politics (I am firmly blue; he red), but are best friends and true partners in this journey. We live a happy, if not, quiet life and have no idea where we will be in years to come.
I'm not sure exactly when my love of film started, but I guess if I had to pinpoint it, I would say it was in high school. For about 2 years I worked as clerk in a local "Mom and Pop" video rental store in Langhorne, PA. By far, the most fun I ever had working - weekend days and weekday nights renting videos to families in the area, all the while entertaining ourselves watching "Empire Records" and "So I Married An Axe Murderer" (Excuse me, I believe I ordered the LARGE cappacino? Hello, look at the size of this thing, it's like Disney's cup-o-chino) over and over again making sure to fast forward through the parts determined "objectionable" by the store manager.
Since then, my love of film has only grown. Whether it is mainstream romantic comedy, action-adventure, art/indie drama, bro-mance, or dramedy, if it's in the theatre (or DVD) and tells a story, I want to see it. Well, that is mostly true. Of course, there are always the few (or many?) that do not quite make muster. You know, the dust-covered, B rated flick you see only 1 copy of on the video shelf, with the blond floosy and dumb-founded markedly-less-than-average looking/witted guy. Those are best left right where they are - on the dust covered shelf in the back of the store under the title "Best Deals".
But I digress. I suppose now that I am a considerable way through this post, I should probably tell you (if you haven't already guessed. Have you? I hope so), what the point of this blog is. In a word - MOVIES. Or for you artsie types, I guess I can also call it FILM. I will do my best to use both somewhat interchangeably to ensure equal opportunity. In this blog I will attempt to write my best and informative and hopefully, amusing, movie reviews.
Oh and in case anyone is having trouble figuring it out, the name of my blog "The Bee Charmer" (to be pronounced in your thickest southern belle accent) comes from one of my favorite films of all time. Fried Green Tomatoes. I won't write about that one now... I'll leave that for a follow-on post, but in the meantime, if you haven't seen it I sincerely suggest you do!
Okay, I think I've sufficiently written enough at this point to serve as a first post. So, I'll leave it now.
Truth be told, I reserved this blog space back in May 2009, gave it a name, and then subsequently failed to actually write it. That said, following a really deep, heartfelt, and frankly, difficult conversation with my husband last night I've decided to take "the plunge" as they say and finally get this blog started.
By way of background information on me (for those few who may actually be interested), I am currently residing in Arlington, VA. My husband, "DoubleB" (as I will refer to him to maintain some level of anynomity since I've not actually asked him for permission to be blogged about), is currently a law school student. We celebrated our 1 year wedding anniversary on November 1, 2009. In many ways we are polar opposites in the way of politics (I am firmly blue; he red), but are best friends and true partners in this journey. We live a happy, if not, quiet life and have no idea where we will be in years to come.
I'm not sure exactly when my love of film started, but I guess if I had to pinpoint it, I would say it was in high school. For about 2 years I worked as clerk in a local "Mom and Pop" video rental store in Langhorne, PA. By far, the most fun I ever had working - weekend days and weekday nights renting videos to families in the area, all the while entertaining ourselves watching "Empire Records" and "So I Married An Axe Murderer" (Excuse me, I believe I ordered the LARGE cappacino? Hello, look at the size of this thing, it's like Disney's cup-o-chino) over and over again making sure to fast forward through the parts determined "objectionable" by the store manager.
Since then, my love of film has only grown. Whether it is mainstream romantic comedy, action-adventure, art/indie drama, bro-mance, or dramedy, if it's in the theatre (or DVD) and tells a story, I want to see it. Well, that is mostly true. Of course, there are always the few (or many?) that do not quite make muster. You know, the dust-covered, B rated flick you see only 1 copy of on the video shelf, with the blond floosy and dumb-founded markedly-less-than-average looking/witted guy. Those are best left right where they are - on the dust covered shelf in the back of the store under the title "Best Deals".
But I digress. I suppose now that I am a considerable way through this post, I should probably tell you (if you haven't already guessed. Have you? I hope so), what the point of this blog is. In a word - MOVIES. Or for you artsie types, I guess I can also call it FILM. I will do my best to use both somewhat interchangeably to ensure equal opportunity. In this blog I will attempt to write my best and informative and hopefully, amusing, movie reviews.
Oh and in case anyone is having trouble figuring it out, the name of my blog "The Bee Charmer" (to be pronounced in your thickest southern belle accent) comes from one of my favorite films of all time. Fried Green Tomatoes. I won't write about that one now... I'll leave that for a follow-on post, but in the meantime, if you haven't seen it I sincerely suggest you do!
Okay, I think I've sufficiently written enough at this point to serve as a first post. So, I'll leave it now.
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