Saturday at the Movies #45 Arthur

Here's a sentence I never thought I would utter: Russell Brand made me cry. I did not see that coming,but there it is. I should state up front that I only have seen portions of the 1981 Dudley Moore original, so apart from knowing the general gist of the story, was able to take this remake on its own terms.

Same general story, richer than rich, eternally childlish, alcohol-soaked playboy must marry to repair the family reputation, but falls in love with poor but principled girl from the other side of the tracks. Will he do as he's always been told or man up and choose what's right? Classic plot right there, so the potential for originality is going to be in the interpretation and performances.

I have long had a soft spot for Englishman-in-New-York stories, so combine that with a lively, engaging performance by Russell Brand as the big little boy, with Dame Helen Mirren and Luis Guzman as his nanny and chauffer, only friends in the world and perfect foils, plus the new-to-me Greta Gerwig as Arthur's love interest, Naomi, an unlicensed tour guide with a passion for the little known sights of New York, and I found Arthur a fun, touching and pretty darned satisfying experience. Though I wouldn't count myself a Jennifer Garner fan, her character, Arthur's would-be wife, Susan, came across as clear and relentless as Susan's quest to nab Arthur's name for her own. Wind in the Willows references are a bonus. "She's my Toad," said in an earnest British accented male voice can be incredibly romantic.

Again, Russell Brand made me cry; that's worth saying twice. I'd expected the madcap insanity of Arthur's typical hijinx, taking the Batmobile out for a spin, outrageous partying, and depending on his lifelong nanny, Hobson to coddle him from the realities of grownup life. I hadn't expected the touching moments, like emptying Grand Central Station so he could give Naomi the fantasy date he'd fabricated earlier, or the love and care he puts into becoming Hobson's caregiver, reversing the roles in the most dependable relationship he'd ever known. The aborted wedding reminded me slightly of Four Weddings and a Funeral, a big favorite of mine, and Arthur and Naomi's next scene after that struck me as both tragic and hopeful that Arthur would accept the wakeup call for what it was.

The grand romantic gesture that is one of the conventions of the romantic comedy has its place here, and I was surprised to find it a more subdued version than I had expected. Then again, Russell Brand does really well when playing off children, so I'm not going to object on this one.

What I am going to object to is one of my pet peeves. Naomi may start out the movie as a tour guide, but what she really wants to do is write children's books. Publishing. Does. Not. Work. Like. That. Naomi's picture book goes from a haphazard bundle of notes, to fully illustrated manuscript popped off in a manila envelope, to Naomi telling Arthur she'd sold her book in such short order that the only explanation is that she sent it via Tardis. Sure, Arthur bought the publishing house and told them to publish the book, but my big question was, how did they find the ms in all that slush? Then again, if Naomi really can go from idea to publishable ms complete with her own illustrations that are professional quality in a couple of days, that's a smart business decision. Get her under a lifetime contract, pronto.

I also want Naomi's publicist, because they were able to get her a reading and signing at the New York Public Library less than six months after she first sent her book out into the world. I'll settle for the DVD of the movie instead.

Happy Dance Friday #59 - Let's Hear it for the Girls

In our family, we have a custom of, when more than one good thing happens at the same time, of asking "is it Christmas?" That certainly applies here. Covering two weeks of awesome in one blog post is a tall order, so again, we'll hit some of the highlights. Have to say that Melanie and Sasha are still neck and neck for my favorite female, and I'm glad I'm not going to have to be the one to cast the deciding vote, especially after this:

How do you...I don't even... oh heck, girls rule.

My appreciation for the terpsichorial magnificence that is Pasha Kovalev only grows when each of my favorite gals from this season gets their turn with the gentleman.

Melanie and Pasha, performing my favorite ballroom dance, Viennese waltz, with an angsty theme and sparkly lights:

Sasha and Pasha, giving off the old Hollywood vibe with their quickstep. From the first shot of Sasha's opening stance, I immediately thought "Josephine Baker," and that certainly carried through the entire dance, with a deft touch of zombieriffic posturing here and there, which put me in mind of an art piece I saw last October and still drool over (that's for another time, but the theme for that piece was "Gatsby's Ghosts".) Best seen for oneself:

Also on my wish list was a Sasha/tWitch pairing, which certainly delivers. I don't know if Sasha has any acting training or experience, but I do know tWitch is a fine actor in his own right (usually credited as Stephen Boss) with a burgeoning movie career, so Sasha gets extra points for keeping up with a professional dancer and actor here, because we do see the story they play out. No words needed.

The "have you been reading my diary?" award, (phrase borrowed from comedian Gary Gulman)however, is going to have to go to Melanie and Neil's contemporary routine, because Bonnie Tyler's rendition of Jim Steinman's "Total Eclipse of the Heart" (can only be beaten by Meat Loaf performing it live) never fails to get me, and if Melanie is dancing to it, partnered by Neil, even better. Then, when I think it can't get any better, (flying leap at 1:17) bam, they hit me right in the heart at 1:38. Spotlight on Melanie, on the floor, Neil stands in darkness but still in her line of sight, and they are acting the parts. Even in darkness, Neil is giving Melanie what she needs to play off to complete her character's story, and the audience feels it. Glorious.

Happy Dance Friday still to come

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Top ten SYTYCD review still to come, but it's 102 degrees and our entire family has melted. Off to wipe down kitty with wet towel and infuse cold drinks into self. Blogging to resume when heat wave ends.

Saturday at the Movies #44 Red Riding Hood

This movie came out the same time as Beastly, which I talked about last week, and my brain has always kept them linked. Both visually stunning, both fairy tale retellings with definite individual flavors, and both didn't quite do it for me.

Red Riding Hood is a difficult one to describe. Though there are differences, if you're familiar with the Brothers Grimm version and can reframe it as a werewolf story, that's pretty much the essentials. I can't fault the cast, though I can't remember most of the actors' names one week after viewing, and hadn't been sure until the closing credits if the heroine, Valerie, were played by Amanda Seyfried (which was correct) or Heather Graham (or was it somebody else I was suspecting?) and character names, apart from Valerie, her love interest, Peter (get it?) and antagonist Father Solomon. Which is about what I need, as it's pretty straightforward.

There's a werewolf attacking people in the town where our story takes place, a medievallish European burg. Usually, the animal sacrifices pacify the wolf, but apparently not this time. Something to do with the moon. Valerie has loved Peter from childhood but is promised to marry Some Other Dude, who was apparently her dead sister's beloved and sister may have done herself in over this prospect. At any rate, there is angst. Secrets involving paternity of someone no longer with us and the wolf is a constant threat when it's dark, which it usually appears to be.

The visuals and atmosphere are the real stars of this movie, the dark overall tone reinforcing the threat of the wolf attacks and the mounting paranoia amongst the villagers, and the stark black, white and gray tones are definitely inspiring for the artistically inclined, including my art crush, Michelle Ward. Which may make it fitting that my memories of this movie tend toward the sketchy. The visuals were gorgeous, and though there is violence, the gore is left to the imagination, which can be far more horrifying as it lets us imagine what isn't shown.

I find myself remembering more what I wish the movie had been. I did like Valerie and Peter's relationship but wanted more of it and the nice surprise that Valerie's fiance is a decent guy, willing to step aside when he accepts that Valerie truly loves Peter. Beyond that, he's the one who suggests he and Peter work together to rescue an imperiled Valerie. I would have liked to have seen that unlikely friendship develop and how the three of them would relate to each other as young adults. Also more of the issues with Valerie's family as well.

Unfortunately, other issues kept me from having the sort of experience I'd hoped with Red Riding Hood. The character of Father Solomon, the werewolf-catcher, came across as one dimensional. Priest in a horror movie? I called it right off that he'd turn out to be stupid or evil, and no surprises there, alas. By the time he departs the story, we've already heard him confess to killing a woman, seen him kill one of his African associates, and torture a mentally challenged person because obviously that person's condition meant they needed killing. Sorry, Father Solomon, I have no sympathy for you.

A festival scene could have been plucked right out of generic medieval burb and plopped into a modern night club, complete with girl on girl dirty dancing to attract the eye of a desired male, and did take me out of the story for its duration.

The identity of the werewolf could have been handled better, and more backstory on how that person became afflicted could have made for a richer experience, though I can't fault the acting in the scene where the wolf's motivations are disclosed. Valerie, as well, proved to be a strong heroine in the end, insisting on doing what was right no matter the cost, but again, I wanted more. I don't normally grade movies, but the best way I can describe my experience with this movie is to give the visuals an A+ and the content a C.

Happy Dance Friday #58 - Two Weeks of SYTYCD and Emmy stuff, with a plethora of clicky links

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DH had control of the remote last week, so I didn' t get to see the top 14 perform until much later in the week, and Happy Dance Monday didn't have the same ring to it. Since my brain whimpers at the thought of trying to recap two weeks at once (bad idea, will not attempt that again) we will go with general impressions....and many, many links. You may want to grab a beverage and sit down for this one.

First, the guest judges. I like seeing different people on the panel and getting different input, but I also prefer when the guest judges have more dance cred. Carmen Electra may have had some valid comments to make, but I didn't hear them; I was thinking "Carmen Electra is a dancer? Really? How? When? I remember Baywatch." :headscritch: Don't watch Modern Family, so Jesse Tyler Ferguson is new to me (and congrats to him on his Emmy nomination, though I will use this space to protest the fact that Neil Patrick Harris was robbed. Basketball hoop scene, people. Gaaaaah. I can quote dialogue from that scene and it knots my gut. :flail: Reining this back onto topic, NPH is apparently slated as a guest judge at some point in the near future? Awesome.) I know Lady Gaga will be guest judge at some point as well, and I'd say she'd be appropriate, as her music has been used on the show, and she employs a fair number of dancers with whom she works, so she does know something. But stars with hidden dance backgrounds we may not have heard of at all? Ehhhh, not so much. If I'm asking myself why Judge X is a judge, that detracts from any merit their comments may have (and please, please, please, Guest Judges, do not let your comments contain the phrase "I don't know," especially when the next judge is Travis Wall, who breaks down the performance by specific moves and technical terms and offers constructive criticism as well as praise.)

Next, Emmy nominations. I did actually squee when I read that Cat Deely was nominated for best host in a reality show or competition. Since she is up against Jeff Probst from Survivor, among others, this will have me biting some nails. Congratulations also to Travis Wall, Mia Michaels, Mandy Moore (the choreographer, not the singer) Stacey Tookey, and the husband/wife team of Napoleon and Tabitha D'Uomo. Tight, tight competition there, and good review of everyone here. I find it interesting that the nominations this year are for the body of work instead of the individual routines, and any other year, I would have said Mia Michaels should win, no contest. This year, I'm putting my money on Travis Wall because he is freaking incredible and there are times when the student surpasses the teacher, blabbity blabbity blabbity. This may inspire me to do a favorite routines cage match after the finale is over.

On a semirelated note, Denise Wall needs to be named official dance mom of the century, because one of her other sons, Danny Tidwell, like his brother, a runner up for SYTYCD champion, is now a soloist with the Norwegian National Opera and Ballet. If that's not enough, another son, Scott Ross, seems to be a pretty decent musician. I want to drop by on family entertaiment night because it would be the best night ever. (Yeah, HIMYM link, but I had to, and seriously, no Emmy nomination for Jason Segel either? Bah. :stomps off in a pique:)

But back on topic. They announced the all-stars, whom we will see next week. I am very sorry to hear Alex Wong sustained another injury, but fingers crossed he will take good care of himself and be able to serve as an all star another year. We get more Pasha, Stephen "tWitch" Boss, and get to see some other favorites return to partner with the current crop, so this is going to be a season to remember. Already scouting out venues for the upcoming tour, because I do not want to miss this one.

Since I probably should include something about the recent episodes, I am now declaring favorites.

Jess is the guy I'm watching (and very sorry to bid adieu to Alexander) most closely:

For the gals, it's a dead heat between Melanie:


and Sasha:


I know this is only scratching the surface, but what a surface it is. Phew!