Reign Over Me

Reign Over Me (2007)

Directed by: Mike Binder

Written by: Mike Binder

Starring: Adam Sandler, Don Cheadle, Jada Pinkett Smith, Liv Tyler

Rating: R

My rating: 5 out of 5 stars!

WOW! I can't believe I've got time to do this again! I love writing and being able to bring you this quality literature and journalism (pause for laughter) time and time again really does bring me joy. So without further ado, here we go!

Obviously my vacation involved a lot of movie time (there were a couple of rainy days) and it was one of my greatest pleasures to share Reign Over Me with my friends and fiancee. Reign Over Me is an incredible film. It's number 10 on my Top Ten favorite movies of all time, and hopefully I can make you see why!

Brief Synopsis:

Alan Johnson  (Don Cheadle; Iron Man 2), a dentist dragged down by the battle of everyday life runs into his old college roommate, Charlie Fineman (Adam Sandler; Billy Madison), who lost his entire family on September 11th. With the help of a psychiatrist in his office building (Liv Tyler; The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring) Alan decides to rekindle their friendship, and it turns out to be a good thing for both of them.

Thoughts:

I think this film is fantastic. In viewing, I constantly found myself wanting to know more about Charlie. Unfortunately for the first half, Charlie didn't want you knowing anything about him! Director Mike Binder did an excellent job of crafting the story so that he didn't reveal too much too soon, and keeps the audience's interest.

One of the most excellent components of this film is how real it feels. Charlie Fineman and Alan Johnson are not real people, but their story resonates with the Americans who lived through September 11th. This could be anyone you encounter on a daily basis. The illustration and the storytelling of the writer/director and the actors feels INCREDIBLY real, and that really appeals to my taste in films, generally speaking.

Of course (I'm certain people who haven't seen this will cringe at my saying this) but my favorite element of the film was Adam Sandler. As I often reveal to anyone who talks to me for more than 20 minutes, I have an obsession with comedic actors in serious roles (like Jim Carrey in The Truman Show or Steve Carell in Dan in Real Life) but this is one of my favorites. What Sandler brings to the table in this film, I can't see many other actors bringing. There are incredible, really funny moments (you know when you share a moment with your former college roommate? I'm looking at you, DG), and then you see Charlie Fineman's obviously tormented soul. As he opens up to Alan, Charlie hits barriers and emotional hurdles, and Sandler channels them brilliantly. On several occasions I've been able to catch Sandler take on a serious role, and I've yet to be disappointed.

The above is not to take away from the acting of the rest of the cast, either. Jada Pinkett Smith (Scream 2) is great as the wife of emotionally drained and frustrated Alan, and Liv Tyler's Angela (the psychiatrist) is a perfect casting fit. Donald Sutherland (The Hunger Games) also has a minor role later in the movie, and he is brilliant (as per usual). Though his dramatic chops are no secret, Don Cheadle deserves a lot of credit for the performance he gives in this film as well. Cheadle's Alan is dragged down by the details of his every day life. After reaching out to Charlie, Alan has a renewed sense of self that impacts all the areas of his life. Cheadle is perfect for the part, and his scenes with Sandler have so much emotion packed into them.

This film tops my list of overlooked movies. I vaguely remember it hitting theaters when I was 18 years old and transitioning from high school to college, but my first viewing came from the same DVD a few days later. In my research for this post (which I do actually do from time to time) I read a lot of critical reviews, and the worse they got, the more impressions I got that the critics had a short attention span (though it DID make me want to be a better writer). Paying attention and following the story really pays off in this film's case.

Final Thoughts:

As I said above, an attention span that will last you for two hours and 4 minutes will really pay off for you in this endeavor. It is NOT for everyone, but if you have a good attention span and are in the mood for a realistic, human, dramatic journey, I'd recommend you dive in. If you've never seen Sandler be serious, this would be a good starter (there are others).

Generally I will not accept someone's criticism of Adam Sandler until they have seen him in a serious role, so keep that in mind as you comment (HA! Like anyone ever does that!). That may seem narrow minded, but (to me) it isn't being fair to Sandler as an artist to pigeon hole him as a washed-up comedian.

In conclusion, I would really appreciate hearing your thoughts on this film. If you have seen it, what was your impression. If you haven't, would you watch it knowing what you know now? Let me know via comment, Facebook, or Twitter (@archivesreport) what you think!! I'd love to hear from you!!

Thanks for reading as always, folks! I always welcome discussion!

God bless!

NAH

The Final Season

The Final Season (2007)

Directed by: David M. Evans

Written by: Art D'Allessandro, James Grayford

Starring: Sean Astin, Powers Boothe, Rachel Leigh Cook, Tom Arnold, Michael Angarano, Larry Miller

Rating: PG

My rating: 3.9 out of 5 stars!

Quick story. My girlfriend (whom I love, very much) told me that she loves to read my writing, so you now all have her to thank for all of my incessant published nonsense.. :) but enough about that. Let's continue.

Last night after I finished watching Fever Pitch and my brother Joshua finished his homework (well, most of it), we, being in a baseball mood after the aformentioned movie and our Cincinnati Reds brought home yet another W, we decided to watch this movie! Great story, I know...

Anyway, I came into this movie for really cheap at some Blockbuster or Hollywood Video that was going out of business. I could tell you if I found the case somewhere, but I honestly don't remember at the moment.  Needless to say, I've had it for awhile, as both of those have been out of business in Columbus for years now....

Anyway. I liked this movie a lot. The premise was a feel-good, family friendly movie, and it sure did deliver. It tells the true story of a high school baseball team in 1990-91, whose school was going to be merged into a bigger district, for a "better opportunity" for the kids. The town of Norway, Iowa disagrees and everyone is in an uproar. The baseball team has won 19 state championships against huge schools even though they are small, and the coach, Jim Van Scoyoc (Powers Boothe; The Avengers) is a legend. He takes a former girls volleyball coach, Kent Stock (Sean Astin; Lord of the Rings) as an assistant before his last season was over, and Stock takes over for the "final season" (LOL, get it?). 

Coach Stock faced certain issues, aside from falling for one of the women on the school board side of the merger, Polly Hudson (Rachael Leigh Cook; She's All That), which included replacing graduated players and earning the respect of the current ones. One of the players recruited by Stock was big-city cool-guy transfer student Mitch Akers (Michael Angarano; Sky High), who is the son of former Norway legend Burt Akers (Tom Arnold; True Lies), who is now a big city realtor, and a widower who has trouble with his son.

They are also followed around by Des Moines journalist Roger Dempsey (Larry Miller; 10 Things I Hate About You) who seems like a nuisance at first....but redeems himself in the strangest, quirkiest way.

I don't want to reveal how the plot turns out (though, since it's a true story it isn't hard to find) but it is a bit of a feel good story. I thought some of the acting was cheesy and the story started out a little slow, but it picked up towards the end and, though less inspirational, still had some serious Remember the Titans type moments. I thought Sean Astin brough a strong presence to his role, Michael Angarano shows some serious promise, Rachael Leigh Cook is nothing more than Shawn Spencer's high school girlfriend to me now, and Powers Boothe was strong but expected to be that way. The standouts to me (acting wise) in this movie were Tom Arnold and Larry Miller. Tom Arnold showed some serious vulnerability (though it was hard to pick out at first) and Larry Miller just stole the show for me. He's always fantastic as any role he has played, but this character was one of my favorites for him (Next to Jindraike from Max Keeble's Big Move). 

Anyway, especially in family friendly vein, baseball fans, anyone who is looking for a feel good film with some pretty solid talent in it, (and some that will make you say "they're still alive?") I would see this movie. It's a cheap find anywhere and I'm sure it's available at the library. 

I don't have much more to say because it's late and once again, I have a real job to get to. But hopefully I've plenty more stuff to bring you after Labor Day weekend. Stay strong and be safe, y'all. I love you all!!

God bless!

NAH

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
Director: Michael Gondry
Writers: Michael Gondry, Pierre Bismuth, Charlie Kaufman
Starring: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Tom Wilkinson, Kirsten Dunst, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood
Rating: R
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars!

I know what you're thinking, and yes, I'm SO glad to have another entry here too! I've missed me too. :)

I watched an awful lot of TV shows in my 4 month absence, and will gladly review any of them for you if my two readers insist. Long story short, I highly recommend Community, Parks and Recreation, and Franklin and Bash. Anywhooooooooooooo

I watched this movie the evening previous with my brother Adam. It definitely made me think. I really don't want to give away the plot, but I will give a little here and there so I can give you an accurate depiction and about a thousand reasons you should watch this movie. 

The movie is storyboarded and told out of order, so I'll just lay down a basic synopsis. Joel Barish (Jim Carrey; The Truman Show) goes to see a special doctor (Tom Wilkinson; Batman Begins) so that someone he once loved and once loved him, Clementine (Kate Winslet; Finding Neverland), will be erased from his memory (after he finds out she had this done, too). The story primarily takes place when three of the doctors employees Stan (Mark Ruffalo; The Avengers), Patrick (Elijah Wood; Lord of the Rings Trilogy), and Mary (Kirsten Dunst; Spider-man) have come to his house at night to work on erasing these memories. There is more to all of their stories, of course, but I hesitate to reveal more in fear that it might cross into spoiler land.

What did I think?

Honestly, it was incredible. It was a tad hard to follow in the beginning, but those are the kind of movies that you have to stick out through the end. It asked and then proceeded to answer questions, just like a good work of art should. Jim Carrey gives an incredible performance (He should have an Oscar nod by now) and so does Kate Winslet, though we have come to expect this from her. The rest of the cast have shown us why they have come into their own as actors, and I got what I expected from them, which was incredible acting. 

The film, like I said, was a bit hard to follow at first, but I only took one half of a star away, for being a tad predictable. Once I had the story put together in my mind, and was listening to the characters intently, I pieced together the main plot. Not everyone will, though, and there are enough twists to keep you on your toes. It  tugged at my heartstrings as well, but kept the romanticism very grounded in realism.

Carrey and Winslet made a lovable duo, and Ruffalo, Dunst, Wood, and Wilkinson all added something great to the story. I expected something that was "supposed to be really good" and I was not disappointed. 

In short, I would highly recommend you watch this movie, but only in a scenario when you can pay attention instead of talk to people through the whole thing. I know your tricks!

If you want to find out more about this movie, you can see what people are saying on GetGlue, here:

http://getglue.com/movies/eternal_sunshine_of_spotless_mind/michel_gondry

 (I hyper-linked to the actual GetGlue homepage, if you don't have an account, you should get one. Seriously.)

Or, you can visit the imdb page, here:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0338013/

My blog contains much of the basic information that IMDB does, but you can watch the trailer or view things in greater detail there.

Anyway, Thanks for reading. Please recommend me to your friends! And if you have movie suggestions send 'em my way.

Peace and Love,

NAH