Monday Review (Film Edition)

My sentence structure and limited reviewing prowess will leave a lot to be desired here. At last, I may finally be succinct. These are the last two films I saw.

Bourne Ultimatum

I don't like action movies, for the most part. I am not dazzled by the special effects, get bored with the fight scenes, and hate the replacement of visual eye candy for character development.

All of that said, I love the Bourne series. I read a few of the books, but didn't remember a single plot line of any of them. What makes the series is Matt Damon, who might be one of the most underrated actors of my generation. Not for nothing, but if you can catch the rerun of him on The Actor's Studio, it is quite prescient. I love Damon because he is smart, and those smarts translate into his acting. He is sharp, quick, fit and the movie is, quite frankly, just plain entertaining. Sure, there are plot holes and suspensions of disbelief, but he makes it work because he is so goddamn believable in this role (and every role he plays). If you need a couple of hours of escape for entertainment purposes, this is the movie to see. I read an interview where he said this movie saved his career. That may be true financially, but he has a lot to offer creatively. I strongly suspect that he will be making amazing movies for the rest of his career.


Once

This movie has amazing buzz in meatspace and the internets, not to mention a 97% rating on rottentomatoes.com. I so wanted to love it.

I spent most of the movie waiting for the magic and thinking that I probably was just too low brow to recognize it. I missed it. It was a decent movie, to be sure, and it has stayed with me for weeks. At its core, the film is about two very passionate people who forge a friendship based on music. There are more than a few scenes where you witness that mystical moment where two truly passionate people bond over the art of music. I got that part. It was heartbreaking. Much of the film is heartbreaking. After the credits rolled, however, I asked P if I sucked as a human being for not being moved beyond belief. Turns out, she felt the same way, and although we both liked the film, we weren't dazzled.

Holy boring film reviews, Batman. This is the season of our film discontent.