Review - Tangled

Zachary Levi and Mandy Moore make a great animated couple in Disney's Tangled. The story centers on a revamped version of Rapunzel, pacing the familiar bed-time tale with a more comedic tone. Levi is perfectly cast as the sarcastic Flynn Ryder who quarrels with Rapunzel as she breaks free from her iconic tower. Fans of old-school Disney animation can rest assured because there's no 3D overkill. It has all the magic of the old films and the lantern scene in Tangled rivals the ballroom scene in Beauty and the Beast, it's that beautiful.

In theaters November 24th.

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AFI Fest Review - The Fighter

AFI Fest 2010 presented by Audi listed a 'secret screening' which turned out to be a sneak peek at Paramount's The Fighter. In his introduction to the film, Mark Walhberg explained how he has been trying to get this film made (and training) for four years! You might recall at one point it was going to be made by Darren Aronofsky (he is a producer on the film). Walhberg eventually turned to his quirky collaborator David O. Russell (I Heart Huckabees, Three Kings) to direct.

It tells the true story of rising boxer 'Irish' Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg) who is trained by his big brother Dickie Eklund (Christian Bale), once a great boxer himself who is now a crack-addicted deadbeat. The trailer sells the movie as your typical boxing biopic but it is actually a drama about two brothers, their eccentric family, and their small hometown that happens to be set against a boxing/sports backdrop. It opens with Dickie 'the pride of Lowell' walking us through his working-class hometown, set perfectly to The Heavy's energetic song 'How You Like Me Now?', and we see that these people love him. He may have fallen from grace but he is still their hero. He made it out. He proved it could be done. He knocked out Sugar Ray Leonard. Or did he? Dickie is sure he's gonna have a comeback but it's very clear that's not gonna happen. Micky could break out but his family is dragging him down. Dickie hardly shows up for their training sessions and his family's paranoia is keeping him from succeeding. Micky starts getting better offers and dating Charlene (Amy Adams) which leads him to question leaving his family out of the ring. When the film starts there is also an HBO documentary crew following Dickie around so we get some ever popular in-character interviews. At first this seems gimmicky but it pays off incredibly well later in the film.

David O. Russell has a unique cinematic voice and I was worried Russell was just a director-for-hire here because this is the first film he didn't write himself. Thankfully that's not the case, Russell keeps the film from being a typical Hollywood boxing biopic by infusing it with his own sensibilities. It doesn't feel like a studio film at all with its gritty indie visual aesthetic and Russell's trademark humor. There is also an authenticity to the town of Lowell and you can tell they used a lot of locals to populate the cast. What really makes the film work though is the acting. Bale is absolutely amazing in the film. His funny, twitchy mile-a-minute Dickie is a lovable loser that will break your heart. It is a complete transformation and at no point are you aware that you're watching anyone but Dickie. He will definitely be getting some nominations next year. Bale certainly steals the show but the entire cast is excellent. Wahlberg does a great job keeping the film on track as the straight man. Micky has been living in his big brother's shadow all his life and you can see the simmering frustration across Wahlberg's eyes. He loves his family but knows he needs room to breathe. Amy Adams. What can you say she nails it again. Her no-nonsense bartender that always stands up for her man is a force to be reckoned with. Melissa Leo is great as the loud proud white trash mother who is in denial about Dickie and will stop at nothing to keep her dysfunctional family together. Skip the awful trailers and just go watch this film. You won't regret it. Opens December 10th.

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AFI Fest Review - Love & Other Drugs

From Glory to The Last Samurai to Blood Diamond, director Edward Zwick is know for his big spectacle 'message' movies. However his first film was the David Mamet-adapted romantic comedy About Last Night. Zwick returns to his rom-com roots with Love & Other Drugs, a 90's era love story set against the world of the booming pharmaceutical drug industry. It opened this year's AFI Film Festival at the historic Grauman's Chinese, kicking off a great week of free films and panels.

Jake Gyllenhaal stars as womanizing drug rep Jamie Randall who falls for Anne Hathaway's Maggie Murdock, an artsy 'no strings attatched' girl with stage one parkinson's disease. They both agree to keep things casual but of course they fall in love. Jamie's career with drug giant Pfizer takes off with the introduction of Viagra (it was based on real-life Pfizer salesman Jamie Reidy's memoir Hard Sell) and the film shows a fast moving funny look at the legal drug selling culture. As the romance blooms, Maggie pushes him away for fear of her disease coming between them. The film's ads are certainly shying away from the parkinson's but it's this aspect of the story where the film shines. Hathaway's performance here is fantastic. Her seemingly confident but internally crumbling Maggie is subtle and heartbreaking. There is powerful scene where she goes to a support group and hears stories from actual (non-actors) people with parkinson's. She finally realizes she is not alone and Jamie realizes the weight of the disease when a long-time husband of a stage five wife advises him to just find a 'healthy woman'. Gyllenhaal also continues his string of terrific performances (we'll forgive Prince of Persia) as the cocky fast-talker who realizes he does want true love. He grounds the character with a soulful realism that makes you root for him.

Personal favorites Oliver Platt and Hank Azaria also impress in supporting roles. The music choices, courtesy of master music supervisor Randall Poster (he does all Wes Anderson's films), are fun managing to make you nostalgic for the 90's. So would you sacrifice everything to take care of someone you love? Even if their state of mind is taking away what you loved about them in the first place. These are the big questions the film asks, albeit in a very formulaic studio-slick way. Ultimately the movie doesn't escape its Cameron Crowe cliches but worth watching for its moving performances. Opens November 24th.

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Review - Oceana 'Love Supply'

In the recent retro-soul revolution a few standouts have emerged and German singer Oceana can be added to that list. Her debut album overflows with pop perfections, combining a mix of musical styles with brutally honest lyrics. Single "Cry Cry" uses a simple piano bounce and hand claps to tell a story of lost hope. The title track bursts with soulful energy over funk horns and a catchy drum beat. Her version of a ballad is certainly bittersweet ("Fucked Up Situation"). She pulls off reggae ("He Says", "Baby Hold On") and modern R&B ("Bad Boy") with equal ease. "Lala" is a fantastic candy-coated throwback to 60's pop and hip-hop beats drive "Upside Down". The down-tempo closer "You Need A Hug" is sweet but also features lyrics like 'it's not my fault you made the choice to be somebody's bitch'. It's a great album that also marks the arrival of a new talent to watch. It is currently available on iTunes and will be released domestically on July 27th.

For fans of: V.V. Brown, Amy Winehouse, Etta James

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Soundtrack Review - The Book of Eli

Atticus Ross makes his feature film debut with a haunting and atmospheric score. Ross incorporates electronic elements within a classical sound to create the sonic landscapes of the Hughes Brothers' post-apocalyptic world. Creepy electro-blips permeate throughout the score creating an off-kilter sense of threat. 

"Panoramic" starts things off with an epic theme that effectively uses synthesizers to create a somber yet hopeful motif. This mood is reflected throughout the diverse album. Ross often employs low-key vocals and tribal drums ("Outland", "The Journey"). There is some ominous brass linked to the villainous characters ("Amen", "Convoy Destruct"). The action scenes dip into industrial rock ("The Convoy"). "Solara Violated" uses sparse sound design to make an uncomfortable scene even more powerful. There are also more traditional tracks like the simple piano melodies on "Human" and "The Passenger". "Carnegie's Demise" rumbles along with an unsettling assortment of baritone sounds. It's not all gloom though, sentimental strings frame "Blind Faith" and the hopeful closer "The Purpose". 

It is one of the more original scores I have heard and is one of my favorite aspects of the film. Ross previously worked on Nine Inch Nails albums, including the Grammy-nominated instrumental Ghosts. He wrote the score with his wife, Claudia Sarne, and brother, Leopold Ross. This marks his third collaboration with the Hughes Brothers, having also scored their TV show Touching Evil and their segment of New York, I Love You. 

The soundtrack is currently available on Reprise Records as well as iTunes [which offers a deluxe edition with four bonus tracks] and will be released on 2LP vinyl on Feb 23rd. I highly recommend it, especially if you're a fan of NIN or electronic music.

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