Living is Easy with Eyes Closed

Any fan of John Lennon will embrace this unassuming little film from 2013, Living is Easy with Eyes Closed. I happened upon it by chance, looking for some light entertainment one evening. It turned out to be a Spanish film, taking place in southern Spain in 1966, when John Lennon was there filming How I Won the War. The film is said to be inspired by a true story. David Trueba wrote the screenplay and directed this engaging movie. It is not rated, although I’d place it at about PG-13 content.

The story involves three people: A school teacher obsessed with the Beatles and John Lennon in particular; a young lady fleeing her residence at a girls’ home; and a boy escaping his family, hitchhiking to nowhere in particular it seems.

Antonio (Javier Camara) teaches English to schoolboys by way of Beatles' poetry, and borrows a car to make the trip to Almeria on his quest to actually meet John Lennon while he is there filming.

He picks up first Belen (Natalia de Molina) at a gas station, and then Juanjo (Francesc Colomer) joins the two, thus beginning this road trip. It was fascinating to see Spain depicted during the 60’s, the barren hills leading down to the sea, the landscape of the coastal town, the simple life of the townspeople. The story pulled me along, just as enchanting to me as the poetry of John Lennon still is.

Belen is mature for her age, and yet so vulnerable. Juanjo is just learning to assert himself and has challenges to overcome, as the world then was as full of bullies as it is today. He wants to copy the Beatles’ hairstyles just like the boys in America did. Music was everything in the 60’s, and the musicians our role models for peace and love.

Antonio wants the lyrics printed on the Beatles' albums so he can better teach English to his students, and wishes to speak to John about this. He basically stalks him on the movie set. Meanwhile, the two young people must make decisions about their life direction, something that Antonio ostensibly helps them do.

There have been other films inspired by alleged encounters with famous people, and this one fascinates just as much. Pat Metheny composed the pleasing acoustic score and Charlie Haden is another featured composer.

This Spanish movie has the feel of an independent film, something I discussed in my last post on Frances Ha. You might classify it as an art house film, something I will blog about in a future post. You get both a foreign, and an independent film if you watch this one (unless of course you live in Spain).

Please feel free to comment on any of my blog posts. I know I have readers, the stats show it, and so I encourage some dialogue. If you have any films or genres you’d like to suggest, do that too. Until next time, here is the trailer for the enchanting film Living is Easy with Eyes Closed.

Frances Ha

Frances Ha is a black and white indie film from 2012. I had heard about it when Greta Gerwig, who plays the main character of Frances, was nominated for Best Actress at the Golden Globes. Although she lost to Amy Adams for American Hustle that year, I remembered how intrigued I was by the trailer about a young woman looking to make it as a dancer in New York City. I enjoy all things dance, so when it came to streaming Netflix, I decided that now was the time to watch.

Frances (Greta Gerwig) lives with her BFF Sophie (Mickey Sumner) in New York City. Frances is struggling. With finances, relationships, with her dance career. Not quite as talented as, for example, Rachel (Grace Gummer), another dancer in her company, Frances is passed over and not given the roles in significant productions that she used to dance. She is, however, a great teacher to little kids learning how to plie and pirouette in ballet class. She seems to have a knack for choreography as well.

Impulsive to a fault, she charges a very short trip to Paris, and finds herself without many resources available to her when she returns. She spends time with her family in Sacramento, a brief interlude I enjoyed. The scenes of her family celebrating at a Unitarian Universalist (UU) church were especially fun to watch as they are my chosen spiritual community, and I have never seen a UU church depicted on screen. I found it refreshing and a good fit with the character and her passions. (Greta was raised Unitarian Universalist, so that explains the inclusion of the affirming and uplifting scenes in church with her spiritual community.)

Adam Driver appears as Lev, one of Frances’ roommates, but other than Adam, I didn’t recognize anyone else in the ensemble cast. The story is all about Frances coming to terms with her strengths and weaknesses, making some choices, and ultimately coming through to a better place than she was when we met her at her first address.

The screenplay was written by director Noah Baumbach and Greta Gerwig, whom I read are a couple. Noah and Greta developed a really engaging film in Frances Ha.

The film has a Woody Allen-ish feel to it due to the black and white cinematography, and the quickly fired dialogue, reminding me of Woody’s Manhattan. The dialogue was great, very witty, and natural at the same time. The story feels real, almost like it could be a documentary following the moves and travels of Frances as she attempts to navigate her life. 

I like indie films; they don’t subscribe to the Hollywood formulas as much, have more of a real feel to them, and often use up and coming talent. An indie film is simply original and creative story-telling by independent filmmakers. For a closer look at indie films, read this article: What exactly is an independent film? And then go spend 90 minutes or so with Frances Ha.

The Nanny Diaries

In search of some light entertainment, I hit upon The Nanny Diaries from back in 2007. The film stars Scarlett Johansson as a smart young woman taking some time off from her life post college to work as a nanny for a family in Manhattan.

I was intrigued by the opening, which featured scenes ostensibly taken from the American Museum of Natural History. Various life size dioramas show families throughout history. This sets the scene for a comedy right off the bat. Annie Braddock (Scarlett Johansson) majored in anthropology, and sees this stint as a nanny as research, or at least that is how the movie progresses, her reflections as an anthropologist peppering the story line.

Mrs. X (Laura Linney) and Mr. X (Paul Giamatti) are a couple clearly not suited to each other. They have one son, Grayer (Nicholas Art), whom Annie quickly becomes attached to as she works day in and day out as his nanny. There is a little romance for Annie in the person of a young man referred to as Harvard Hottie (Chris Evans), who is a tenant in the building where Annie works.

Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, both former nannies, wrote the novel The Nanny Diaries that I have not read. It must be a scathing tale on the escapades of the very rich who farm out their kids to other people to raise.

I never could understand why a woman would choose to have a baby and then just turn it over to someone else to raise. Lots of cultures apparently do this, some out of necessity, as the mother needs to work outside the home for income, but others because they apparently have “better” things to do with their time than mind their own children.

Mrs. X is the latter, and it is not flattering. Paul Giamatti as her husband has nothing redeeming about him physically, or as husband material. The only one who seems to have it together is Annie. A caring, smart woman, who becomes so attached to Grayer that she cannot quit even when she finds that her life is no longer her own.

The Nanny Diaries reminded me of The Help in some ways. They are both peeks into two different cultures that give their children to others to be cared for. The Help was excellent in portraying the culture of African-American nannies caring for white children in the Deep South, who were probably even more taken for granted and underpaid than Annie appears to be.

I wonder about the book the screenplay was based on, and may look it up. I hope it is in the same format, kind of like a thesis on the phenomenon of child rearing among the upper class.

The film is rated PG-13 for language. And goes along with lots of comedy in between some really touching moments between Annie and Grayer. It’s a good film for some evening when you just want to relax, laugh, and not think about anything too serious.

Yes Man

Recently I watched Yes Man, a 2008 comedy starring Jim Carrey. I am a fan of Jim’s; I love the way he can screw up his face in so many truly bizarre ways. His antics always make me laugh. This film was no exception. Yes Man is rated PG-13 for crude sexual humor, language and brief nudity. Sometimes I don’t agree with the ratings, but I do for this one. It has adult content in it, but not enough to warrant an R rating.

Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) is a depressed divorced guy who works as a loan officer in a bank. His friends, including Peter (Bradley Cooper), try to get him out of being in a funk, to no avail. Carl turns himself around though when he goes with a friend to a motivational lecture by a guru like teacher, Terrence (Terrence Stamp). Terrence publicly confronts Carl during his talk, and challenges him to say yes to everything presented to him. Carl begins to follow this directive. It got me thinking about another film of Jim’s, Liar Liar, where the main character cannot tell a lie. Both involve rigid ways of relating in the world, seemingly impossible to carry out.

But Carl keeps saying yes, and the results are surprising, kind of crazy (watch out for his neighbor lady), and ultimately results in his meeting the breath of springtime air he longs for in the free spirit of Allison (Zooey Deschanel). Their age difference is a bit much, 18 years to be exact (they share the same birthday), but somehow the love interest between them works. Allison is a singer in a funky band and has her own quirky way of approaching the world that Carl finds attractive.

Eventually, as might be expected, saying yes to everything without weighing the consequences can bring trouble, and it does. I really applaud the creativity of the screenwriters for their inventiveness in the situations that Carl finds himself in. I recommend this film. It kept me laughing all the way through.

I enjoyed seeing Zooey Deschanel in Yes Man, having seen her previously in Elf and in (500) Days of Summer. She is lovely, good at playing offbeat characters, and has a very nice singing voice.

Jim won two Best Actor Golden Globes for his performances in The Truman Show and Man on the Moon. I recall his acceptance speech for the second one where he commented that now he’s the Tom Hanks of the Golden Globes (Tom won two Oscars for best actor for Philadelphia and Forrest Gump).

My favorite Jim Carrey film, however, is The Majestic. If you haven’t seen it, you may be amazed at how good he is at playing it straight. His career is known for his physical comedy and outrageous faces, but in The Majestic, he shines as a fictional screenwriter in Hollywood during the McCarthy era. An inspiring, and touching film, I highly recommend it, along with the other films I mentioned in this review.

Room

Brie Larson was the best actress winner in the 2016 Academy Award race for her performance in Room.  She also won a Golden Globe, among other awards, for her greatly nuanced performance. Room was based on the best selling novel by Emma Donoghue. She also penned the screenplay.

I was a bit worried about what I’d have to endure in watching this film. It was rated R (turns out just for language), and I knew it was about a teen that was abducted, raped and gave birth to a son while in captivity. I also knew they had escaped. Other than that, I didn’t know much.

Thankfully, the gruesome details of what Joy (Brie Larson) endured when first kidnapped were not in the film. The perpetrator, referred to as Old Nick (Sean Bridgers), shows up briefly to give us hints about what Joy’s life was like during the seven or so years she was locked up in his shed, but the film focuses much more on Joy and her son Jack (Jacob Tremblay). Jack, now five years old, is old enough now that Joy believes they can successfully execute an escape. She sets into motion occurrences that ultimately lead to their release from captivity.

Once back in her childhood home, it’s not just mother and child that must adjust to the world, it’s also Joy’s parents (Joan Allen and William H. Macy) who have to come to terms with what happened to their little girl stolen from them at the age of 17. Joy and Jack get the therapy they need to recover, and her parents do better, and worse, with the sudden return of not just their daughter, but a grandson too. Not just any grandson, but one conceived by rape.

The chemistry between Brie and Jacob is great. I can’t imagine anyone else playing the inquisitive and brave Jack. The nuances of their relationship were believable, as was Joy’s meltdown after her escape. The strangeness of the world for Jack is artfully filmed, and their existence in a tin shed, how they interact and what they do daily, just serves to lay the groundwork for their eventual escape.

The media descended upon the two like the vultures they are, and I was reminded of the notorious instance of abduction and captivity of three young girls in Cleveland not that long ago. I wondered if the author got the idea for her fictional book from that incident. If so, she did a good job keeping the story focused on just enough details to let us see snippets of their life together in room, and then with Joy’s mother. Not too much detail, just enough to show us how they healed.

I recommend this film to anyone interested in the resiliency of the human spirit. Don’t worry about having to watch horrible scenes of abuse. This film instead focuses on the relationship between mother and child, the love that sustained them, and that sees them through to the other side of Room.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2

It’s been a long time coming. Finally, a sequel to the ever-popular breakout film My Big Fat Greek Wedding written by Nia Vardalos. This film that came out in 2002 was a little sleeper that was not really expected to be a big money maker. Much to the delight I’m sure of the famous couple of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson, who were two of the producers of the film, it did very well, grossing over $222,000,000 by the end of the year it was released! Proving that a quality story and good actors can make a classic film for all time, and that word of mouth really works to draw people into the theater.

Nia Vardalos is a comedienne who wrote a great screenplay about her Greek family. Also starring in the film with Nia is easy on the eyes John Corbett (Northern Exposure, Sex and the City), and these two ended the first film in wedded bliss.

I like that Nia did not immediately do a sequel. She let time pass and developed a really great screenplay in My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2. Toula (Nia Vardalos) and Ian (John Corbett) have a 17-year old daughter, Paris (Elena Kampouris), and she hates all things Greek, which is primarily her embarrassing extended family. She’s on the verge of leaving the nest empty for her parents when she goes away to college.

Meanwhile, Toula’s parents, played by Michael Constantine and Lainie Kazan, discover they were never officially married, and this causes much distress for them, leading to another wedding to be planned and executed. Lainie Kazan is perfect as Toula’s vibrant mother Maria, and her Aunt Voula (Andrea Martin) is back, never mincing words whether she’s advising Toula, Ian or Maria on the ways of love.

While the world may have changed in 17 years, some things about being Greek apparently never do. Is Gus really descended from Alexander the Great? Does everything in the modern world really stem from early beginnings in Greece?

We get to look in on Toula and Ian’s marriage as they navigate “middle-age” together. The sweet Ian remains tolerant of his Greek in-laws, as well as Toula’s over-protective focus on their daughter. There’s just enough memories and call backs to the first film to make it memorable all over again, although I think if you hadn’t seen the first, you’d still enjoy this film. It could stand very well on its own.

My Big Fat Greek Wedding II is rated PG-13 for some suggestive material. I thought it would be just another chick flick, but there was lots of laughter from the other people in the theater, and one man present was really guffawing. It is a feel good movie about the connections we make between family, spouses, and even friends. There should be more films made like this one.

I discovered that Nia Vardalos also co-wrote the screenplay for Larry Crowne with Tom Hanks, a cute little film you should check out if you haven’t already.

Purple Rain

Prince Rogers Nelson passed away on 4/21/16 at age 57, and I mourned along with the world. As therapy perhaps, I just had to watch Purple Rain again. Immediately after seeing it in the theater back in 1984, I bought the album, and later, after selling all my albums, I replaced it with a CD. Prince and the Revolution, Purple Rain, will always be in my collection of music.

The film is rated R for sexuality, some nudity, language, and some violent content. The film is said to be quasi-biographical about Prince, who plays a musician named simply “The Kid”.

I liked Purple Rain then and I liked watching it now. I enjoyed seeing Prince perform again. His raw energy astounds me; the passion with which he delivers his songs is just intense. The era that the film was made was one of changing identities for men and women in the music scene. It is visually stunning in terms of sets and makeup. The story moves along fairly well too. A nice mix of intense drama and sometimes ridiculous comedy, often supplied by Morris Day and the Time, a rival band to Prince’s crew.

One of the film’s subplots deals with domestic violence. The Kid’s parents have an abusive relationship, and his father is played by Clarence Williams III of Mod Squad fame, who’s had a long career in film. The Kid’s father has broken dreams, never got a break in life where his creativity would be recognized, and when The Kid realizes this, it changes him. He has an awakening and transforms. It’s a very satisfying story in that sense.

Some criticisms of the film from other reviewers included that Apollonia and the girl group Morris Day set her up in were horrible. I agree that the song they performed, Sex Shooter, was awful. In fact, that song was nominated for a Razzie award for worst original song that year. But I would argue that Prince wrote it to be awful. (You’ll notice Sex Shooter is not on the Purple Rain CD, for good reason.)

Apollonia was selling herself short joining that little trio, and that horrible song fit in perfectly with the plot. As did all of his other exceptional songs in the film. If you look at what a good musical should project in its musical numbers, every song should tell a story and move the action along.

Prince received an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score, the last award given out in this category (no films have met the qualifications to even be nominated in the category since then).

Here is a link to the announcement of Prince’s win at the Academy Awards, and his brief acceptance speech with Wendy and Lisa accompanying him:  Prince accepts Academy Award

Watch Purple Rain again if you haven’t seen it in years, and if you’ve never seen it, watch it for the classic film it now is, and to see Prince’s musical genius. You will always be missed, Prince.

The Out-of-Towners

The Out-of-Towners is a remake of the 1970 Neil Simon comedy that originally starred Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis. This remake from 1999 stars Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn as two empty nesters searching for a way to redefine their relationship. The film is rated PG-13 for some sex and drug-related humor.

Henry and Nancy Clark (Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn) live in relatively small town Ohio, and are definitely not big city types. Their home now bereft of children, when Henry gets a job interview in New York City, Nancy follows him. Her presence leads from one comical situation to another as their trip to the Big Apple unravels.

Steve and Goldie are such fine comedic actors that there are many, many laugh out loud moments in this film. Plus, you get to see New York through their eyes as they experience it for better or worse. Some scenes are pure slapstick, and the film is timeless in that any empty nester could relate to the thoughts and feelings they’re having as they redefine their lives without their children.

At one point they stumble in on a group therapy meeting by accident, and none other than Cynthia Nixon, of Sex and the City fame, plays one of the group members. In her short time on screen, she plays the sultry, sexual woman that she embodied so well as Miranda Hobbs in SATC. I could see exactly why she was selected for one of the best HBO series of all time.

One of the reasons for enjoying this film so much is Steve Martin. He is one of my favorite comedians. His facial expressions are so expressive, his smile spreading like the Cheshire cat. He is especially funny when he accidently gets high, much to his wife’s chagrin. Goldie is beautiful and plays off of Steve’s shenanigans in her unique style. Goldie justifiably won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 1969 for her role in Cactus Flower. And as for Steve Martin, his career achievements are just too many to list, but my personal favorite is All of Me with Lily Tomlin.

Goldie’s real life son, Oliver Hudson, has a small role playing the Clarks’ son Alan. John Cleese appears as Mr. Mersault, a pompous hotel manager I couldn’t see being played by anyone else.

Neil Simon has written an honest portrayal of a couple going through big changes and how overcoming adversity serves to bring them together again. The craziness that the couple encounters in their travels in NYC are nonstop, and I can only imagine what fun he had writing the screenplay. He is an accomplished and awarded writer, in television (The Odd Couple), on Broadway (Biloxi Blues) and in films (The Goodbye Girl), not to mention having won the Pulitzer Prize for Lost in Yonkers.  

I came across this film on streaming Netflix one night, and was glad we chose it. If you’re looking for a light, funny, classic comedy, this would be a good choice.

Where to Invade Next

I’ve been following Michael Moore’s career since 1989 when he released his breakout documentary, Roger & Me, which incidentally was one of film critic Roger Ebert’s favorites. Michael Moore won an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2002 for Bowling for Columbine. He’s an accomplished writer, director, and producer, and someone conservatives love to hate.

We’ve waited six years for this, his most recent film, Where to Invade Next. It is rated R for language, some violent images, drug use and brief graphic nudity.

Michael has created another strong documentary feature, this time “invading” other countries to see what Americans can learn from them. I found this concept refreshing, as it focused on what other individuals and governments on the planet are doing right. It’s ultimately a hopeful film.

He utilizes his trademark humor much of the time. He had to use humor to balance out certain segments that were downright heartbreaking.

He admits early on that he is looking to pick the flowers, not the weeds, the things that are working and which set an example for excellence. Some critics have skewered him for this, saying it’s complicated; he’s ignoring the things that aren’t working, blah, blah, blah. Again, he said very clearly that he’s picking the flowers! Save the criticism for some other time. A film is not going to work or be cohesive if it’s not focused. Michael is focused.

And the examples he shows are astounding! He visits Europe, Scandinavia, and Africa, interviewing businessmen and women, political leaders, government officials and regular people. Children too.

You will see how Italy treats its employees, what France serves schoolchildren for lunch, and how Finland has the best educational system in the world.

Portugal was noted for decriminalization of drugs, Norway for the unique way they treat their prisoners, and Germany for the way they heal from the sins of their fathers in the holocaust (truly tear jerking, that segment).

Slovenia provides free college education, not just to citizens, but to foreigners as well. Tunisia is a leader in women’s rights, as is Iceland, who actually prosecuted and sent to prison those responsible for the financial corruption of the banks.

This film is one of the best Michael Moore has done. I attended the movie with three others and afterwards over dinner we asked each other, “If there was one idea from another country that we would like to see initiated in America, what would it be?” We each selected a different country’s example, showing that we are individuals with unique concerns for the welfare of individuals in our country. That was encouraging.

Because if everyone who saw this film asked themselves, “What is the one thing that spoke to me?” and then told others, started a discussion of what could be, and what steps would need to be taken to create this change, our country would be going in a positive direction.

I especially ask WOMEN to see this film. You’ll see why. Be inspired.

Mamma Mia! The Movie

Mamma Mia! I haven’t had the pleasure of seeing this musical on stage yet and have always wanted to. I know it’s still playing around the country in live theaters. When my sister said let’s watch the movie, I said yes! The music is all ABBA, a great Swedish group from the 1970’s. It stars Meryl Streep as Donna, the woman who had trysts with three different men one summer resulting in daughter Sophie (Amanda Seyfried). In the film Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgard play her past loves. The film is rated PG-13 for some sex-related comments.

Sophie wants to know who her father is and after finding an old diary of her mother’s, sends letters inviting each of the suspects to her wedding, signing the letters as from Donna.

This makes for good comedy. Also in attendance are Sophie’s two best friends, and Donna’s BFFs as well. This is a high-energy film, not in the way of car chases and crash scenes, but in dancing and lots of movement. I found myself thinking about how every movement is exaggerated on stage in a musical. In the theater, this is vital as the actors are projecting to a large audience, some of whom are not going to be able to see them that well. In the film, it’s just annoying. Subtlety plays well in a film, probably because facial expressions can be seen clearly and so exaggeration is not necessary.

On the one hand, I enjoyed the setting, it being Greece, the blue ocean, the sun, the sand, lots of opportunity for water sports, swimsuits and fun. But I found myself thinking I’d rather see this performed on stage. The most recent live performance I attended was Legally Blonde:  The Musical. The film Legally Blonde (2001) is one of my favorites, and so when I heard this was a production at the Albuquerque Little Theater, I jumped on it. Two of my friends accompanied me, and we had a fantastic time. The important thing I found through attending that show, and now reflecting on Mamma Mia! The Movie is that a musical is meant to be on stage, and not shown as a movie. Legally Blonde: The Musical was created in 2007, after the non-musical film had endeared Elle Woods to us all. Unlike Mamma Mia! which was I assume filmed directly as how it would progress on stage.

I recommend you see the musical Mamma Mia! as live theater. I don’t recommend this movie. Maybe I’d feel differently about it if I had already seen the live production, but I think it would have played better if the film had just dropped the music altogether and become a comedy.

I recommend another film featuring ABBA’s music, Muriel’s Wedding. It stars Toni Collette and Rachel Griffiths. And a more recent film I have reviewed on this blog is Love Is All You Need. Also starring Pierce Brosnan, it has a wedding theme, and takes place on the beautiful coast of Italy.