Hairspray (2007)

This is a delightful, light-hearted film.
Tracy Turnblad (Nikki Blonsky) is a girl with dreams as big as her hair. She wants to be famous while her mother, Edna (John Travolta) wants her to take over the laundry business from her. Luckily, her father Wilbur (Christopher Walken) encourages her. So she auditions anyway and manages to make her dream start to come true.
However, it is more than just Tracy's size standing in her way, she also is totally for integration. Negro Day on her beloved Corny Collin's Show (James Marsden is Corny) is her favorite day; she wishes that it was every day. Station Manager Velma (Michelle Pfeiffer) is against change and doesn't like Tracy. Tracy is, after all, more talented than her bland daughter, Amber (Brittany Snow). Tracy even befriends Seaweed (Elijah Kelley) and his younger sister Little Inez (Taylor Parks), hoping that Inez can join her on the show next.
When I first watched the film I thought it was pretty predictable until the end when Tracy doesn't win her coveted title of Miss Hairspray, but Inez does instead. But she gets the guy, Link Larkin (Zac Efron). He finally decides that love and doing what is right are more important than his career. He leaves the nasty Amber and gets together with Tracy. Epic win.
But this film isn't about the plot, its about the songs and they are amazing. It is also perfectly acted and casted with each actor fitting their roles beautifully. Travolta should have been Oscar nominated for this role, different from anything he had ever done before but he is spectucular. Walken is hilarious as the joke show owner and supportive husband and father. I wish that Kelley and Blonsky would be offered more great roles like these ones because they are certainly capable of much more than they are given. Even Allison Janney provides great laughs as Penny's (Amanda Bynes's) religious mother, who ties up her misbehaving daughter in her bomb shelter with the stern warning of not to touch her canned tuna. Queen Latifah is also great as the host of Negro Day and, more importantly, mom to Seaweed and Inez. Her spread encourages Edna to spice up her sagging marriage with Wilbur, though Velma tries to thwart that as well.
Despite putting a light-hearted spin on the whole matter, this film also tackles racism and problems within Hollywood. Velma is furious when the negroes perform the same song as the nicest kids in town performed on Corny's show, but Motormouth Maybelle (Latifah) says that they wrote it so of course they should perform it. Velma hates the suggestive moves that the blacks have on their show and believes that even if children like their music, they should be taught otherwise because they are children and don't know any better. Despite Tracy's dream being within grasping distance, she tosses it all away to march for equal rights because that is more important in the whole scheme of things. There is even an interracial relationship between Seaweed and the naive Penny though her mother will probably never forgive her.
It encourages those who are different to take a chance. Tracy encourages her mother to finally leave the house and Edna likes what she sees. But even leaving the house was a huge risk and adventure for her. It's a good thing that Tracy sees beyond her own front door. Grade: A-

Murphy's Romance (1985)

I'm not going to waste my time on the plot of this film because it isn't worth it.
James Garner is Murphy Jones, the title character, but he isn't the star of the film. That is Sally Field's Emma Moriarty. She is divorced from her cheating and stealing ex-husband, Bobby Jack (Brian Kerwin) but in the end, fate makes kicking him out of her new ranch house again easy. He impregnated a teenager and has young twin sons with her. This means that she is easily able to end up with Murphy, a widower who is much beloved in the town.
Garner was nominated for an Oscar for this role and he doesn't even do much. Still, the film wasn't that serious and I wasn't in the mood for anything that heavy, but this film also fails as a rom-com with only one funny scene in the whole film-the one where Murphy and Bobby Jack both are getting Emma to turn around and dance with them.
I didn't like that Emma tried to somewhat make things work with Bobby Jack. He cheats at poker, even when it is just a fun game with family and steals money from Emma's wallet and she barely causes a fuss about it. She also keeps urging Murphy to get remarried, never thinking that he likes her. I mean, why else would a guy buy a horse to get her home business going and stay over to eat her dinner every night, along with her son (Corey Haim) and ex-husband? Also noted, normally the woman is tight-lipped about her age, but in this case, it is Murphy who doesn't reveal his true age until the last line of the film. Spoiler Alert: he's sixty.
I thought the film was pretty well acted, not well enough for an Academy Award nomination and the film was also real, with a grimy set and dust everywhere because this is the desert after all. Sure, the film is filled with stock characters but that can work and it mostly does for this film. That being said, I've already almost forgotten about the film and that is never a good sign. A film should either be brilliant or awful, but I'd remember it regardless. A film should never strive to be mediocre, and that's exactly what this film is, mediocre. Grade: B

Black-ish: Pilot

It is about time that network TV has a sitcom with a minority cast. Sure, it has been done in the past, but not recently and that is just a shame. Now, this season, ABC has two, this one and Cristela, which I will probably review later, once that show premieres.
Andre Johnson (Anthony Anderson) narrates, saying that he has come a long way from the Hood. And he has, he even gets a promotion at his advertising firm, becoming the senior vice president of the urban division. He was looking forward to this promotion but is unhappy that he's in charge of black stuff.
And his son, Andre, Jr. (Marcus Scribner) is trying out for field hockey, which devastates him, thinking that basketball should be his sport. Andre reaches a boiling point when Andy announces that he wants a bar mitzvah. He announces a family meeting and says that he's truly going to keep it real.
He does have other family members. Rainbow (Tracee Ellis Ross) is his doctor wife, who is mixed race. Andre accuses her of not being really black, which upsets her, because no one bothered to inform her hair or butt. Zoey (Yara Shahidi) is the oldest daughter, who hasn't been able to put her phone down throughout the entire episode. The twins, Jack and Diane (Miles Brown and Marsai Martin) are just adorable. When they describe another girl in their class, they say it is the one who always smells like mushrooms instead of just stating that she's the only other black girl in their class. Rainbow is thrilled that they don't see color while Andre doesn't understand why they don't simplify things. He ruined what I would consider to be a great moment in parenting.
He almost loses his job when he takes the bad part of urban, the riots and shootings, etc and puts it together in a presentation at his largely white firm. Fortunately, his wife rips him a new one and says that sure, he might hate his job but he would be even more mad if a white guy got the position over him. He realizes that he has made a mistake with everything and needs to be more supportive of his children, because he is giving them a better life than his own. He throws a huge party for Junior and Junior admits that he just wanted to make a sport, get his foot in the door because he is a freshman and wants to make an impression and feel a boob. "Can't blame him for that," Pops (Laurence Fishburne) says. He is the typical thirteen-year-old boy and that's just great.
Everything works out too quickly after building somewhat slowly, but this show has potential. I wish that the supporting cast would have been used more rather than nameless guest stars. But the family chemistry is real and Fishburne and Anderson play off each other brilliantly. The roles are perfectly suited toward each of them, but Anderson does need to be more serious and less goofball. The other children, Zoey, Jack and Diane need to be more developed because they could be interesting characters. And yes, the family is rich. Certainly upper upper middle class, so this show will not be as realistic as The Middle, but hopefully it will be better than Modern Family. It does need to improve and have better jokes, but I will continue watching for at least a few more weeks. Grade: B

The Middle: Unbraceable You

It's finally back! And Sue (Eden Sher) miraculously got her braces off.
Sue, poor girl, has been wearing her braces diligently for eight years. Yes, that should be a world record, and finally, Frankie (Patricia Heaton) is fed up. She's sick of the orthodontist sucking their bank account dry and the orthodontist (Richard Kind) is worn down. And she makes a huge point of pointing that her teeth are clear for the first time since she was nine. But her happiness is short-lived. She has weak, soft bones and after just two days, her teeth start shifting again. She is devastated and has never even kissed Darrin (John Gammon) with her straight teeth. Sue believes that the universe is against her and is completely and utterly defeated.
On top of this, Frankie pulls off her worst moment yet. She forgets when the school year is supposed to begin, meaning that Sue misses the candle ceremony and a bunch of other important stuff.
Mike (Neil Flynn) is probably the only one who isn't shocked by his wife's stupidity, but he has his own worries, with Axl (Charlie McDermott) beating him at basketball for the first time ever. At first, he is thrilled, but winning quickly becomes old when it continues to happen. It doesn't really comfort him when Brick (Atticus Shaffer) says that that is the natural order of things. It isn't until Bill Norwood (Pat Finn) and his nephew come over and the guys can play as a team that Axl and Mike feel better about the whole thing, though Mike is certainly aging, his bones are creaking.
Sue doesn't want to go back to the orthodontist, Dr. Niller, but she does and luckily, he has a solution that doesn't involve putting braces back on her teeth. She just has to wear a retainer for the next year. The Year of Sue as she has dubbed it. So despite her quick depression, Sue bounces back. She always does.
Though I love Sue's eternal optimism, I wish that just this once, her unhappiness would last for more than part of an episode. The world is always pushing her down and she bounces back up so quickly. I love that, but it is getting old because that is what always happens. It's predictable. I also wish I could have seen Darrin's reaction, that would have been priceless.
I also don't buy Frankie being that dumb. She isn't that smart, and missed too much of her dentist school but seriously, being a week off and then having no one notice until that Friday, that is just sad. In the past, the school has called the Hecks to tell them that one of their children is absent from school. And the Donahues are their neighbors, certainly, they would have noticed before Friday. And Brad (J. Brock Ciarlelli) should have called her. So that isn't funny, its stupid.
That being said, there were still several funny moments, all of which are appreciated. Grade: B+
Side Notes:
-Brick has an interesting plot line. Seventh grade is a big change for him and he feels that he needs a new book bag. He tries several, the funniest of which is when his huge guitar case falls down the stairs and opens, spilling the contents. He finally finds an old pizza delivery carrying case which he thinks will do the trick.
-Brick announces that Axl will replace Dad, Sue will replace Mom and because he's a mistake, he doesn't replace anyone. I think that this is pretty close to accurate, though Sue will never be as clueless as Frankie. And Axl isn't as humble as Mike though Mike also has his inflated moments.
-Once Sue's braces are removed, the family celebrates by eating all the bad things like caramel corn and gummy worms. Frankie insists that they eat something green, like the jolly ranchers.
-Sue still has enough confidence to run and win the position of Sergeant in Arms, leading the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance.
-When eating out at a restaurant, Sue loses her retainer in the garbage. The episode ends with the family digging through a dumpster to find it. Sue is gross and puts one in right away without washing it first, but its not even her retainer.
-The episode starts out with such promise. The Hecks finally know how to relax and not bother anyone else. Brick even took up another hobby of croquet, hitting a ball back and forth between one bracket.
-This season is going to be great, though I have a feeling that only Sue's plot lines will actually matter. I hope I'm wrong.

Red Band Society (Pilot)

“They can never cut into your soul. That is what makes you yourself.” Leo (Charlie Rowe) says this to Jorgi (Nolan Sotillo) before Jorgi undergoes major surgery.

This show is certainly a tough pill to swallow and yes, I have issues with it, but there were parts, mainly the above mentioned line, that truly touched me.

Red Band Society occurs almost entirely in the hospital setting, albeit a beautiful one. The rooms that the teenagers live in have personality and they are big, bigger than my dorm rooms in college. Dash (Astro) has cystic fibrosis, a disease so rarely mentioned in Hollywood. It’s inherited and is fatal. Also, though this isn’t mentioned in the show, it renders the men sterile. Still, people with this disease are living longer now than ever before. Emma (Ciara Bravo) has an eating disorder. Her ex-boyfriend, Leo, has cancer and part of his leg has been removed.

And then there are the new kids. Kara (Zoe Levin) has an accident in cheerleading practice and sprains her wrist but it turns out to be much more. She has an enlarged heart and because of her drug use, the chances of her getting a transplant aren’t great.

Jorgi has come up from Mexico because Dr. McAndrews (Dave Annable) is the best and he won’t take no for an answer, so McAndrews makes some space for him, making him Leo’s roommate. Leo doesn’t take the news that well, but the two bond too quickly.

Even Kara sort of even turns her bitchy act around, though she still has a long way to go.

The whole thing is narrated by young Charlie (Griffin Gluck), who is in a coma after some accident that occurred when his father was visiting him unexpectedly. His father then lost his visitation rights but still sees him by volunteering as a music therapist.

My issues are numerous. Like how in the world does Kara get away with smoking cigarettes at cheerleading practice and in the hospital. This comes back to bite her in the ass. And she’s just allowed to go into Emma’s room and eat her food, and she is plain nasty to Emma, but they help each other out. Sort of.

Then there is the scene when Kara is unconscious and visits with Charlie who wants two things. He wants pizza and to tell his dad that it wasn’t his fault. That was just odd, and each coma is different. Sure, Charlie might be able to hear everything but that doesn’t mean it is like that across the board. The show gets out of reality and into something metaphysical. I hope every show doesn’t have something like that.

The kids all have a party on the roof that night, Kara’s and Jorgi’s first night there, so they can have fun before Jorgi’s surgery, the beer is courtesy of Charlie’s father and Emma looks to be leaning toward Jorgi over Leo which will certainly make things interesting. 

Octavia Spencer is top-billed as Nurse Jackson, who doesn’t take crap from anyone and she is great. The acting is actually pretty good, with mostly unknown talent. And mechanically the show functions beautifully, and yes, I will continue watching this show, though you know a death will happen at least once this season and they better be doing everything correct medically, or else I will be super mad at them. But there was that touching moment that made me teary. Grade: B+

Billy Elliot (2000)

First of all, I would highly recommend watching this film on DVD with subtitles because sometimes the accents can be difficult to understand. 

It is 1984, northeastern England when the coal miners are on strike which can get particularly ugly. Billy Elliot (Jamie Bell) is just a young boy with a love for music and plucking out tunes on the piano for fun. Not that his father, Jackie (Gary Lewis) or elder brother, Tony (Jamie Draven) understand. Billy takes boxing lessons which he doesn't really like nor is he truly talented at it. But then the chain-smoking Mrs. Wilkinson (Julie Walters) starts teaching her ballet classes there. He starts taking them and practicing around his house, privately of course. Because his father is furious when he finds out. Then Mrs. Wilkinson decides that Billy has true potential and begins teaching him privately and secretly without asking for any money. 

Things seem like they might actually work out but then Tony gets arrested the morning of Billy's big audition and a nasty argument ensues between Tony, Jackie and Mrs. Wilkinson and Billy's talent is squashed. In fact, the piano is smashed for firework that winter thanks to the strike. Christmas is a sad, depressing affair. It is only because Billy's friend, Michael (Stuart Wells), struggling with his sexuality, wants to learn some ballet that Billy is able to resume. His father sacrifices his scruples and goes back to work before the strike is over, much to Tony's dismay. But Jackie must put Billy's needs first. He is finally on board with Billy's true dream and recognizes that Billy is immensely talented. 

So Billy has his big audition and though he impresses the judges, they remain stoic throughout so Billy thinks that he has blown his one opportunity and punches another boy in the dressing room, something the board does not take lightly. But they also ask Billy the question of what he feels like when he dances and his answer is brilliant, he feels like he is flying which lands him a spot.

He goes away to London to fine his craft. The union caves and the strike is over so his father and brother go back to work and Mrs. Wilkinson is thrilled at her young pupil.

The film ends over a decade later with Tony, Jackie and Michael attending one of older Billy's (Adam Cooper's) performances because they wouldn't miss it for the world.

The plot in this film has been overdone, over and over again and this one fails to break new ground though it is enjoyable thanks mostly to Bell's excellent breakthrough performance. He deserved more credit for this role than he received. He truly dances and then the film comes to life because the film sags when he isn't moving, feeling the music in his soul. Walters is the one who received an Oscar nomination and she is quite good though Lewis deserves some credit as the father who finally realizes how important it is to support your child, especially one who longs for his mother. (She died before the film began.) Even Nan Heywood provides some good lines as the slightly senile grandmother who could have been a good dancer if she had the training. 

Fortunately, the music is also good and I probably wouldn't even mind owning the soundtrack. The set is also realistic. But I do wish the viewers would be provided with some background information on the strike and the reasoning behind it because it plays a vital role in the film. Grade: B+

Citizen Ruth (1996)

Alexander Payne's first film is definitely one to watch. This is one of the few Hollywood films that is actually pro-choice.
Ruth Stoops (Laura Dern) has issues. She huffs paint, cleaning fluids and glue and she doesn't understand birth control at all. She has had four children all of whom were taken away from her. In the past eighteen months, she has been arrested sixteen times for huffing something, six times she was placed in a rehab facility but that clearly didn't work. She also awkwardly claims to the judge that she was only an unfit mother for two of her children, not for all four of them. And now she's pregnant again, father nowhere in sight.
The judge charges her with harming her unborn fetus and that has results he could have never imagined. She is 'rescued' by some pro life religious people, the Stoneys, Gail (Mary Kay Place) and Norm (Kurtwood Smith). They have two children, Sheryl (Alicia Witt), who is bad, sneaks out of the house to party and even is brave enough to have her boyfriend (or some random guy) sleep over at her house while her parents have choir practice. Their younger child is a miracle. Or so they claim.
They are thrilled that Ruth is going to clean up her act and have her baby. Yet, she blatantly tells the nurse at the clinic that she wants an abortion. She is strongly advised against that and is even shown a video describing abortion. She is stunned and mentions meekly that she has slept in a dumpster so many she slept on dead babies which truly does sadden her.
But she can't stand begging women at the clinic not to have an abortion. She sneaks away and gets high and punches the miracle baby in the face and Gail is furious. Fortunately, Diane (Swoosie Kurtz) decides that the Stoneys don't have to take all of the responsibility themselves, plus she has experience with working with drug addicts. But Diane is actually a plant. She is actually firmly pro-choice and is delighted when Ruth decides that she actually wants an abortion.
But the pro-life people get together and raise money. Ruth is thrilled with the offer and immediately changes her mind. Fortunately, Harlan (M.C. Gainey) decides to get money off the table; he will personally donate 15,000 dollars (the same amount) so Ruth can have her free will back again.
Each side is adamant that she side with them while Ruth's voice sort of gets left out. I predicted that this could all just end if she has a miscarriage and then that happens. While that is probably for the best given that Ruth continues to drink and huff fumes while she was pregnant, it still felt cheap. But Ruth isn't able to tell Diane the news. Instead, she decides that she will have the abortion and just take the money and run. Jessica Weiss (Tippi Hedren) arrives and they fly her to the clinic in a helicopter and then bulletproof limo, all the while there are protesters from both sides surrounding the clinic. And Ruth just knocks out the guy guarding the bathroom window and runs away, even though her story has made tons of headlines and her face has been featured on the news, she is still able to get the money and run away. No one even notices which is just sad. They are like politicians, so focused on their side winning that they don't actually listen to what the people (in this specific case Ruth) actually wants. And Ruth was still debating the issue because each side had valid points and I do feel that she was upset and sad by the miscarriage though that didn't last long because money is the main thing she wants. Ruth is also not as stupid as some of the characters believe. Sure, she blows Diane's cover, but her childhood was rough and she wishes that she could have turned out better. Who knows what will happen, but for now each side has a good fight, which they love and Ruth has money so she will probably overdose and die by the time they find her.
In addition to discussing a good issue, the film also has good performances with Dern being especially brilliant and the supporting cast which includes Burt Reynolds as an odd sort of character who might be having an inappropriate relationship with one of the babies he saved and Kelly Preston as Diane's lesbian lover. And I loved the gritty realism of the film including the gross act that is huffing which colors Dern's mouth gray. Sure, this film isn't perfect with a few odd exchanges between Norm and Ruth that probably should have been addressed or left out of the film. This is a film that people should see and think about. Some people make the right choices for the wrong reasons while the common man gets ignored. Grade: A-

When the Game Stands Tall

This movie was pretty decent, not the best film about football (Remember the Titans is much better) but not the worst movie I've seen this summer.
De La Salle is a Catholic High School in Concord California. And yes, they do recruit students from around the area because the program is so beloved, probably bending the rules about scholarships. After all, when the film starts, they have won every single game for the last twelve years. That year (2003) they win their twelfth straight state championship, but trouble is brewing. The juniors are not as close knit as the graduating seniors are. And then the beloved coach, Bob Ladouceur (Jim Caviezel) has a heart attack which devastates his eldest son, Danny (Matthew Daddario) who just wants some sort of attention from his father.
And then, they lose the first game of the next season (2004). Forgive me if I don't feel too bad for you guys. This is the girl who went to a high school where the football team was horrible. Out the forty games I attended throughout my high school marching band career, we won just seven of them. Losing humanizes you. But it devastates the team, all of them shed tears afterwards as though their whole lives are ruined. You can't always win and I was glad that a team from Washington state was finally able to stop them.
They lose the next game as well and Coach decides that something must change. The two key players have issues. Tayshon (Jessie Usher) is cocky and extremely full of himself. He cares only about himself and hasn't learned to care about the team first. Chris Ryan (Alexander Ludwig from The Hunger Games) is a senior going for the state record of most touchdowns but his father, Mickey (Clancy Brown) is cruel and cares only about the record and when his son fails him, he becomes abusive. Fortunately, Coach takes the team to hospital for veterans which teaches them some valuable lessons and they manage to win the next game playing against intense heat and a team with more than three times the players. And the victories continue until they return to the state championship which the tone sort of switches as the last game focuses on whether Chris will get his record or not. In the end, he chooses not to get that last touchdown. The team will still win regardless and he loves the team more than his father. They are a team. Another state championship for a school who may have the talent and the heart but I always root for the underdog and De La Salle is never the underdog.
The film should be about more than just football and it sort of hints at that. Like when Terrence Kelly, a great player heading off to Oregon but is shot and killed just before he can leave in a shooting that I feel was a set-up. And it should focus slightly more of Bob's relationship with his wife, Bev (Laura Dern). After his heart attack (the man's a smoker, yikes, but I guess he quits after he nearly dies), he apologizes and calls himself a liar. He preaches to the boys about being better men and be devoted to their families while he ignores his family in favor of the team. He tries to devote more time, and at first, its easy because he hasn't been cleared for duty. Who knows what happens after he returns to coaching full time.
Though the film is all over the place and it misses leading the viewer to something special, the film is not a waste of time, not really. It is nice seeing characters grow up and change right before your eyes and it is nice when they put the team before themselves, but can these guys really be as good as they seem? Still, the acting is decent but it makes me long for the fantastic TV series Friday Night Lights. That show managed to create real characters with flaws and issues. They are not always nice and squeaky clean and at times, they are even the underdogs. Still, despite all these issues, it does tell a great story but I feel that this film would have worked better as a made-for-TV film because it is much more of a feel good film than anything else. Grade: B