 This was almost an Under the Radar review, but I decided I liked what I saw here over what I saw with 'Good Time', so here we are. In case of curiosity, I'd give this one a 5/5 pretty damn easily.
Here we have a touching dramatic comedy directed by Dave McCary, a writer/director for SNL, and written by newcomer Kevin Costello and Kyle Mooney, who come would also be familiar with from SNL. On top of that, we have a Lonely Island Production (among other studios) which is interesting in and of itself. The film opens with a guy named James (Mooney), a man-child type, sitting in front an old TV, watching tapes of a show called 'Brigsby Bear'. We see that it's a bit of an obsession for him as he has a room loaded with merchandise from the show. Here, we also meet his two kind parents, Ted and April (Mark Hamill and Jane Adams, respectively). While his mother is a bit more strict about James' studies, his father is very good about encouraging his imagination. With his obsession with this old kid's show, James tries to think of a good way to make things end for the show, as it's left very much unfinished. Before we know it, however, we discover that James was actually taken by Ted and April early in his life. They have kept him in a sort of cell out in the desert, claiming that the air is toxic outside in order to keep him close to home. James is returned to his real parents, Greg and Louise (Matt Walsh and Michaela Watkins respectively) and his sister, Aubrey (Ryan Simpkins). He then becomes a sort of fish out of water, having no real social skills and only the lessons Brigsby has taught him to get by. Despite his lack of social skills, however, James manages to make several new friends who enjoy how real and down to earth he is. Eventually, James learns about movies, and considers it a great way to end the Brigsby series. Upon being told that "anyone can do it", he sets out to make it on his own. But the real question is, will people like it? This is easily one of the best films I've seen this year. It has a lot of heart, great, light humor, and it even manages to make you tear up a tiny bit at times. You end up loving James' character as well, because he manages to make some of our most struggled with ideas so simple. He acts as a kid seeing the world for the first time. Think 'Elf' but far less eccentric. In trying to compare it to titles in my head, I pretty much decided that it was the idea of 'Room' (not 'THE Room') if it met something like 'Be Kind Rewind' in that it captures the essence of imagination in such a big way. And that's something in movies I can always truly appreciate. Not just being imaginative, but the characters themselves showing that they are imaginative and creative. Especially if it's done in a way where the characters are able to say "No no, this is who I am, and screw you if you find it stupid". It's a little hard to come across, but if you can find it it's well worth checking out if only to put a smile on your face after a shitty day. This is a new personal favorite, and is the first time this year I wondered about potential Oscar material. We shall see what happens!
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 Here we have an interesting 2007 film for those of you who are adventure-seekers. Written and directed by Sean Penn, the story is based on the 1996 non-fiction book of the same name, written itself by Jon Krakauer.
As far as the story itself, it's a biographical depiction of the two years Christoper McCandless (Emile Hirsch) spent traveling. Headed northbound to Alaska, Chris changes his identity to "Alexander Supertramp", and meets several interesting people along his journey. His reasoning is simply to get away from everything society calls "living", and to get back to the nitty gritty of a life consisting of himself, nature, and nothing much more. Meanwhile, his parents, Walt and Billie (William Hurt and Marcia Gay Harden) struggle through the pressures of having a missing son. This is along with his sister, Carine (Jena Malone), who co-narrates (along with Chris) and has always expected Chris to do something like this some day. Some of the additional cast includes the likes of Catherine Keener and Brian H. Dierker as a couple of hippies; Vince Vaughn as the runner of a harvesting company; Kristen Stewart as an unsure of herself teenage folk singer; and Hal Holbrook as a lovable and caring old man, more than willing to help Chris out. As I mentioned at the beginning, this one's for those real adventure-seekers. It's a great film either way, but it will speak to survivalists and the like a bit more. I don't know for certain, but it seems like some of the survival techniques this guy attempts seem more realistic than most movies would attempt. It seems quite grounded in the story that it's based on. That said, there's also something here for the artsy, as it IS a bit of an artsy film. This Chris guy wasn't just an adventurous type, he was also well-educated and really quite poetic by the looks of it. Throughout the film, he paints a great picture with his words about the wilderness, survival, the fear that comes with it, and just his emotions. So be fairly warned that it is a deep and poetic film. But there is something about it that pulls you in. This title came to mind after checking out 'A Walk in the Woods'. The thought process basically being that I wanted to share with you what I assume to be a truly wonderful man-embracing-nature film. Indeed, perhaps my favorite of it's kind. |
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