Month: October 2014

The Judge – David Dobkin

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The Judge starring Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall.

The Judge starring Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall.

This is a movie that the average movie-goer will enjoy more than the critics. Most of the reviews for The Judge say that the movie is riddled with clichés and that the characters were weak. The reality is, if you have/had a father, you will find this movie moving and will likely be brought to tears on more than one occasion. Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall play father and son in this courtroom drama that takes place in a small Indiana town that, in the words of Robert Downey Jr.’s character Henry “Hank” Palmer, everyone “just wants to leave”. Upon hearing that his mother passed away, Hank, a big-shot defence attorney in the city, makes the trip to his home town where he must face “The Judge”, his father Joe Palmer. It is obvious before they even meet face to face that their relationship is strained, to say the least. When The Judge is suddenly faced with a manslaughter charge in the wake of his wife’s funeral, Hank is forced to stick around and deal with the siltation, much to his father’s dismay. The two characters clash all the way down to their basic ideals, Judge Joe Palmer has been the town judge for over 40 years and firmly believes in justice and the law’s part in it, while Hank operates under a somewhat different principle, summed up in this perfect line: “Innocent people can’t afford me.”

The Judge has been labelled as a courtroom drama but most of the movie actually takes place outside of the courthouse and deals with the intense family dynamic and Hank trying to cope with his old demons rather than the trial itself. The acting is superb, with a great supporting cast that includes Vera Farmiga and Billy Bob Thornton, and there are just enough quick-witted one-liners to lighten up the mood when things get a little dark. And they definitely do. You’ll find yourself more interested in the family and how they are going to get through it, than finding out the details about the hit-and-run that started the whole thing.

Watching this movie, it is hard to believe it is directed by the same person who brought audiences Wedding Crashers and The Change-Up. Upon further inspection, it appears that the screenplay was written by Nick Shenk, who also wrote Gran Torino. Suddenly things seem to make a little more sense. The Judge has a hefty runtime of 2 hours and 20 minutes which some critics have complained about, but there is enough suspense (in terms of the trial), unanswered questions (in terms of the relationships), and impending re-conciliations to retain the audience’s interest. The argument that the movie is “something we’ve all seen before” sounds like its coming from all the people who thought Avatar was “just a Pocahontas rip-off”. Sure, there is a formula (there usually is), but that doesn’t mean that the movie isn’t worth watching, because it certainly is worth it.

The best advice is to stop reading reviews and just go see it for yourself. You’ll laugh, you’ll probably cry, and at the end you’ll be happy you saw it.

Gone Girl – David Fincher

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Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike

Gone Girl starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike

How well do you know your spouse? That is the question that forms the premise of Gone Girl, David Fincher’s latest masterpiece that stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike as “Nick” and “Amy”, a couple struggling through their marriage as the movie begins on the morning of their 5th Anniversary. It is on this day that Amy disappears and Nick is suddenly thrown into a tumultuous investigation where he is the prime suspect. It begins slowly, with a lot of questions and clues, and progressively ramps up until it grabs a hold of you and doesn’t let go.

This is not the first glowing review for Gone Girl, nor will it be the last. It’s an odd mix of thriller, mystery, and drama with enough giggle-worthy dialogue thrown into it to make it truly unique. It is gripping from the very beginning and hangs on to your attention until the credits roll. Gone Girl‘s running time is 2 hours and 29 minutes but it never feels forced or dragged out. In fact, the only disappointment was that it ended at all.

Aside from Affleck, who is perfect in his role of the lost husband making all the wrong moves in the ensuing media storm, the cast of females in the film is what gives it it’s punch. Rosamund Pike is truly amazing, and saying anything else beyond that would be giving too much away (it is a film that relies on suspense and genuine shock, so providing any more details in a review would be a disservice). Supporting actress Carrie Coon takes on the role as the bold, tell-it-like-it-is twin sister “Margo” and Kim Dickens is the bright lead detective assigned to the case. Both are very compelling and often funny as “Nick” slowly pieces everything together surrounding his wife’s sudden disappearance.

The movie is based on a best selling novel of the same name by Gillian Flynn, and one can only imagine how good the book is based on the success and reception of the film so far. Given the detail in the movie, it’s hard to believe there could be more to the story that just didn’t make the cut.

The instant buzzing of discussion and the looks of pure astonishment and joy on the faces of the movie-goers once Gone Girl ended said it all. It’s still early, with Oscar season right around the corner, but this is easily the best movie of the year (so far).