March 20: Carnage

"Two pairs of parents hold a cordial meeting after their sons are involved in a fight, though as their time together progresses, increasingly childish behavior throws the evening into chaos."

  Carnage is a movie filmed entirely in one apartment and is completely reliant on the performances of its four cast members. It's claustrophobic and frustrating, because these characters, arguing for 80 minutes, can simply just walk out a door to avoid more fighting, but don't. Each "out" that's presented is teased, with coats being put on and hands on the door knob, but no one leaves. Each of their egos gets the best of them, and they have to continually one up the next person. All four characters are played exceptionally well by Jodie Foster, John C. Reilly, Kate Winslet and Christoph Waltz. And, as Carnage continues, all four become very unlikable as their characters spiral down into a chaotic mess of vomit, tears, cologne, alcohol, and tulips.

Who knew tulips complimented scotch and barf so well?

   Of the four main cast members, John C. Reilly is definitely the most likable and provides the most laughs. He seems to be one of the most grounded of the four, and while his wife (Foster) proves to be an absolute b**ch, you end up rooting for Reilly in the end. Winslet is much more relaxed and crazy than most of her roles and it's refreshing to see her acting in a role that's not her just seemingly trying to win awards. Christoph Waltz is much better then how he's been lately (see The Three Musketeers), and his American accent is actually believable (note: he's crazy German). 

F**k that movie is good. 

   Overall, Carnage is very entertaining for what it is- four people arguing in a room for an hour and a half. The dialogue feels real, smart, and funny; and, although some of what unfolds seems over-the-top, the film works wonders. Carnage is adapted from a French play by Yasmina Reza and, while I am not familiar with the source material, I can only imagine its transfer to film is faithful and successful. I am a sucker for play adaptations (Closer, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Sleuth), and I understand dialogue driven films aren't for everyone, but I would highly recommend Carnage. 

The Good:

exceptional acting from four very high caliber actors

The Better:

a smart script that never loses your interest

The Best:

John C. Reilly... people forget he can actually act

Overall: 8.2/10

Best Quote:

1. Penelope : Did you know Ethan had a gang?
2. Michael : No, but I'm thrilled to hear it!

Trailer:

Feb 19: Contagion

"A thriller centered on the threat posed by a deadly disease and an international team of doctors contracted by the CDC to deal with the outbreak."

  When you imagine a movie directed by Steven Sodenburg with such a huge cast like Contagion, you would think "Oh boy, this movie is going to be incredible!". Unfortunately, Contagion falls pretty flat and leaves a funky after taste (that you will immediately assume is bat flu). If anything, Contagion leaves you with an overwhelming sense to wash your hands and try as hard as you can not to touch your face every minute. Contagion is sucessful, somewhat, in its attempt to scare you into thinking that a single virus can kill millions and ruin countries, but it's just not that terrifying. Contagion makes a world-wide epidemic seem more annoying and bothersome than deadly. Sure, the virus and the way its handled is based a lot on fact, as genuine disease and virus scientists were brought in to help. I guess my idea of the "end of the world" is a lot more terrifying and bat-shit crazy than what really might happen. 

We all know this is going to happen. 

   Contagion is a good movie, it's just not great. I think in its realism, it lost a lot of my interest because I was really hoping for something a little more 28 Days Later and a lot less CNN Headline News. The entire film feels almost like a documentary, with good looking actors playing "normal" people who are all trying to find a cure for some deadly disease. The acting is great, yes, but when you have a film that's supposed to be a realistic look into what could happen, post-pandemic, you might want to cast some no name actors. Kate Winslet as a leading scientist for CDC? Hardly believable. Jude Law as a scum reporter who thinks he has the cure? Insanely unbelievable. 

Aw, look how cute she is pondering the effects of an airborne pathogen on the central nervous system. 

   Overall, Contagion is an interesting look into what could really happen if the super-flu broke out. It's filmed very well and the acting is great, but the whole thing is just missing that "OMFG I AM ALWAYS GOING TO WEAR FACE MASKS AND BATHE IN PURELL" factor that one would assume a truly terrifying disease movie would induce. With great directing, a very well written script, one could only imagine what kind of movie Contagion could have been if a little of that factor was injected (no pun intended) into the film. 

The Good:

smart, clearly researched script with great cinematography and acting

The Bad:

about a billion different story lines going on, and leaving little time to truly care about any individual

The Ugly:

it's just not scary.. oh and Gwyneth Paltrow 

Overall: 6.6/10

Best Quote:

Dr. Erin Mears: "The average person touches their face three to five times every waking minute. In between that we're touching door knobs, water fountains, and each other."

Watch These Instead:

Outbreak- very similar to Contagion, just a little creepier

28 Days Later- hands down (in my opinion), the best disease apocalypse movie ever made 

Children of Men- beautifully dark film with insanely exceptional camerawork