The Sting

As The Jester quickly approaches the end of his first year of daily movie reviews, I figure he’s got to be getting a little worn down. Jester – consider this my gift to you – a day off!

Flipping through the channels last night, I stumbled across The Sting playing on Retroplex. Jester has referenced many a movie over the last year that he will drop everything for to watch if it’s on, even if he’s already seen the movie a dozen times. For me, The Sting is one of those films. It was filmed in 1973…it’s based in the 1930’s…and it just has a timeless feel about it. At a high level, the film is about con men, but after you’ve seen it a few times you appreciate that there is so much more to it. For me, there are three elements that stand out above the rest. First – the intricacy and complexity of the plot. The main character is Johnny Hooker (Robert Redford), a small time con man who frivolously wastes every score he collects. As the movie progresses, Hooker is essentially trying to juggle four “secret lives” at the same time: working with Henry Gondorff (Paul Newman) and his crew to run a “big con” against Doyle Lonnegan (Robert Shaw), pretending to be turning against Gondorff to gain Lonnegan’s trust, running from the Joliet cop who has been chasing him for years without letting his Gondorff know for fear of losing his spot in the “big con”, and reluctantly working with the FBI against Gondorff to clear his name. Confusing? Maybe. The first two times I saw it I had trouble connecting all the dots. Trust me when I tell you that I’ve now come to fully appreciate the flawlessness with which they pulled this all off. In the end, there isn’t a loose string left hanging anywhere, and they’re brilliant in the way that it all ties together. The second element I’m really impressed with is the cinematography. I wouldn’t call myself a “film geek”, but even I have come to appreciate the set-up of some of the shots in the movie. Two that stand out: a scene where Hooker is peering over the shoulder of one of Lonnegan’s bodyguards, he and the bodyguard both had to his specific marks so you can barely see Hooker’s eyes as he sizes up the much larger bodyguard, and a scene where there is action set in front of a storefront window, and just when you think that scene is over they zoom in on the window itself and you realize that there one of the con men monitoring the action from a 2^nd story apartment across the street. These are subtle touches, and in today’s film world they’d probably be done with CGI instead of slick camera work and direction. The third element I’m always impressed with is the on-screen chemistry between Paul Newman and Robert Redford. It’s not a “bromance” kind of chemistry, so don’t take that the wrong way. These guys are the epitome of the “buddy movie” pairing. They work so well together, they seem like a natural fit. In the movie, Gondorff and Hooker clearly have the “Mentor/Mentee” relationship, and I have to believe that same relationship existed between Newman and Redford in real life, as well. It’s always fun to see two masters of their craft working side by side.

So, the next time you’re flipping through the channels and you see The Sting listed in the channel guide, give it a shot. You will not be disappointed. 

Dean-O guarantees it.

NBM rates The Sting - Phenomenal

The Others

I will be the first to tell anyone that I do not care for the horror genre or the scary beyond belief films that so many people seem to love. On the other hand, if a movie can be creepy and twisted with a superb ending, then I am in. The others is more of a suspense thriller than anything else. It does have a few shock and awe factors built in, but mostly it is just a story we are trying to figure out. When Grace (Kidman) moves her and her two children to a Jersey mansion near the end of WWII, all is well. They move into this house that they must board up almost immediately due to both her children having a light sensitive disease. This makes this huge home very dank and extremely creepy and dark. They are basically shut ins, and all Grace is waiting for is her husband to get back from the war. When Grace and the children begin hearing things, she begins to wonder. When they begin seeing things, then she is certain that they are treading on the territory of ghosts or spirits unable to crossover. Possibly the previous owners. She is unsure, but she doesn't like it. Short and to the point, she wants her home spirit free, so her family can go about their lives in peace. Like I said, a few quick scares, a couple shocking moments, but when it comes down to the money shot, the answers we have been seeking, what we realize is crazy cool. A great ending that I didn't see coming, which says a lot. Well written, smoke in mirrors, Nicole Kidman is fantastic, and I will watch this again.

NBM rates The Others - Awesome

The Lincoln Lawyer

So I had heard from one person this movie was great, but I'm not sure how much I believed him. He only watches about 5 movies a year and tends to have the opposite opinion on film as I usually do. This one, however, he hit the nail on the head. Right from the get go we see what Mick (McConaughey) is all about. he is a top notch, no BS, very successful defense attorney. Basically, he represents the scum of the Earth, but he likes it that way. He is good, and no one can deny that. When he is presented a case involving a millionaires son charges with loads of bad things, he accepts it. Two reason: His cockiness, and the paycheck. When he meets his client, he has the 20 questions, but never asks anyone if they actually did it. His motto is along the lines of "Everyone is guilty and we may get them off, I WILL not be responsible for sending an innocent man to prison." In his mind, innocence does not exist. His 32 year old, wealthy, playboy client claims he has been set up. Louis (Phillippe) is a smooth talker, but when faced with 25 years in prison, he is still a pretty smooth talker. He states that the innocent don't hide, so he is gonna do whatever it takes to get this behind him. With Mick and his PI, Frank (Macy) on the case, they should have this aggravated assault with a deadly weapon whilst attempting to rape a prostitute thrown out rather quickly. Mick is better than good at what he does. He knows it, but so does everyone else who knows him. When the digging begins, Mick is more than a little unhappy with what he finds. Louis has been lying to him about some of the details, which gets Mick's gears turning. What starts out as a pretty standard court room drama quickly escalates into an extremely intense thriller, and a guessing game of who is playing who, and what is the real deal with Louis? What Mick finds out floors him, and now he does not know what he is to do. He is a man with no conscience, which is why he is so successful, but when faced with a decision to make, will he make the right one? An extremely smart movie that makes you feel it has ended, and then here comes another bomb. Clever, and well written, but the supporting cast alone should make you more than willing to shell out $1 to rent it. Marisa Tomei as a prosecuting attorney who also happens to share a daughter with Mick. Then we have the prosecuting attorney on this particular case is Josh Lucas. John Leguizamo is always welcome, but the best role is mildly unrelated to the thick plot of this film is played by Trace Adkins. The Country music singer plays a BA biker in a California gang who always seem to have business with Mick. These bikers add a really good perspective to the film. It shows how even though not many people in judiciary system may not care for Mick, there are a lot of real world people who appreciate what he may have been able to do for them, and life is all about who ya know.

NBM rates The Lincoln Lawyer - Phenomenal

Brick

This is a fantastic independent film that everyone should see. Well, maybe not everyone. Definitely those who love Joseph Gordon Levitt (JGL) or independent films, or films about the seedy underground of the drug industry. Illegal drugs, not pharmaceutical drugs. That's not the real story though. The real story is of Brendan (JGL) trying to figure out what happened to his ex girlfriend. I know most people would not care about their ex, but because their relationship recently demised, and she had been acting strange before she broke up with him, he felt something was off. Apparently she had gotten into Brick-a new drug with a teenage demographic. When he finds her dead body near a sewage tunnel, he doesn't want to hand it over the police. He wants to know why she was killed. She had called him a couple days earlier in a bit of a panic and somewhat incoherent. He recalls some of the key words she used and from here he begins his investigation. He asks a lot of questions around his high school and some of the people do not like being asked about their business, hence his face pictured above. He must know why Emily is dead, and he also wants to make the one(s) responsible pay. It is a deeper revenge flick than most. Extremely smart also. Sometimes too smart. I have only seen it once, but would definitely like to watch it again. Brendan's drive is unlike that of most high schoolers, but his loner attitude probably helps out with that. When he really gets going, he finds out this goes so much deeper than he could have imagined. He gets further and further underground, and at this point he feels even his life may be at stake. Brilliant movie, perfect ending. Superb. 

NBM rates Brick - Phenomenal

Trapped in Paradise

Yet another film based on the relationship of 3 brothers. This time it's a comedy about the ties that bind. It follows Bill Firpo (Coppola Cage) and his two younger brothers, who both happen to be currently in prison. They get out shortly into the film and claim to be cleaned up. His brother Dave (Lovitz) is a con man, while Alvin (Carvey) is a semi retarded kleptomaniac. When they get released from their most recent stretch, they have a plan. Unfortunately for their eldest bro, who has never been in the klink, they wanna get him involved in their latest scheme which is to take place in the small town of Paradise. It is an absolutely no fail bank robbery, and Bill cannot say no. They travel to Paradise for the "smash and grab" heist and from here everything goes wrong...I mean funny. The rest of the middle of the film shows how this small town bands together to preserve Christmas and the spirit that it holds. The brothers stole money from the bank, but essentially stole the dreams of every resident in this small town. When they fail to get out of town [car trouble], a local offers them a hot and a cot. They accept, thinking they can be on their way in the morning. The house this good Samaritan takes them to is actually his parents house, who happen to be the owners of the local bank that was just robbed. They sit there and eat this feast while listening to these poor people trying to figure out how they are going to move forward, but the thing that gets Bill's goat is the fact that these lovely people never bad mouth the bank robbers. They figure these robbers must have had a real need for the money they stole. This not only baffles Bill, but makes him regret his actions. No matter how hard they try to get out of Paradise, nothing works. It all comes to a frightening conclusion when more ex-current-cons end up in Paradise as well. They are there to get the money the brothers stole as they claim the bank heist was their idea. A super sweet movie about how people can generally be super sweet. Many people may see this and chalk it up to Hollywood fiction in the terms that "People are not that way. That nice. That forgiving. That gracious." I say, you must have never been in the small town Southern USA. The South offers loads of people that are just this way with these traits and they are completely real and honest. The 3 brothers wanna do what's right, but it may be too late. Too many parties are involved at this point, and the guns have been drawn.

NBM rates Trapped in Paradise - Awesome

Four Rooms

By special request, NBM brings you Quentin Tarantino's most underrated film. I, on the other hand love Four Rooms. It is comprised of Four different segments which are all tied together with a bellhop named Ted (Tim Roth) on his first day of work. Each segment is directed by a different person and two of the four happen to be Robert Rodriguez and Tarantino. The other two are really not important. I mean, when one thinks of this film, the two that stand out are "The Misbehavers", and "The Man from Hollywood." So Ted is basically having the worst first day of any career ever. He starts out as cheeky as possible kissing ass, and doing his job at 110%. Then after the first couple rooms, he just stops caring. The first room is a coven of witches and that story is cool because of the nudity, but it doesn't last long and then it is over. The second room is a pissed off Italian who sticks a gun in Ted's face with certain accusations that Ted is able to weasel out of. This is all filler that leads to the 3rd and 4th rooms. The 3rd room, aptly named after what Antonio Banderas (The Father) is constantly telling his kids. "Don't ... Misbehave!!" This is the room that puts him over the edge. He is given very specific, threatening instructions by the Father to basically babysit his children. Then everything goes wrong and lets just say that the young boy smokes, they watch porn, a dead hooker is found in the mattress and a hypodermic needled from God knows where ends up in the flesh of Ted. Hilarious and very bad for our rookie bellhop. Then we get to the final room where Ted's night from Hell may pay off if he plays his cards right. Bruce Willis, and Tarantino show up on screen in this room. They have made a very serious wager that involves a lighter, $1500, and a man's pinkie finger. This is where Ted, an unbiased third party, can make his day all worth it. It may be the best ending possible, or the best ending of any movie ever. As A-Bomb stated tonight, the visual with Ted and the Meat cleaver, along with his lack of hesitation is among the best visuals ever. It is a fun movie to watch, and is very much re-watchable. And remember, any time you may be having a bad day, and someone asks you, "What's the problem?", be sure to reply with, "I have PROBLEMS!! Plural!!

NBM rates Four Rooms - Phenomenal

Just Married

Another movie about a wedding? It's ok, because this is 100% comedy gold. This is the love story of Tom (Kutcher) and Sarah (Murphy). These two star crossed lovers meet and get hitched rather quickly. Maybe too soon. One should never get married before they have a huge fight and get back to good from that fight. They do and her Father is not happy. He feels Tom is after the family money. Her Family is extremely wealthy and Tom is extremely broke. It's not that at all, but their "love" will be tested sooner than they hoped. They survive the wedding, but the European honeymoon is the story. It is the funny stuff. It all starts with the "compact" rental car once in Europe. Apparently a "compact" across the pond is quite different from here in the US of A. It only gets better from there, and our newlyweds realize marriage is work. Not only work, but hard work. They get kicked out of their posh digs for shorting out the entire electrical system with their sex toy, then they are on their own. The picture above is when her Father's choice for Sarah to marry shows up in Venice. Unbeknownst to her, he is on his own agenda to break them by arising jealousy issues. He succeeds and they travel back to the states separately. Now he has to fight for her, or decide whether he made the right decision at all. His Father gives him a speech and that seems to light a fire under Tom's pooper. This leads to the funniest and most horrific scene in the film. "I'm going to RAM the gate!!!!. The ramming part is ok, but with a cherry 1969 Dodge Charger? I don't know of a thing on Earth that would cause me to ruin that car. Great movie, great memories.

NBM rates Just Married - Awesome

My Best Friend's Wedding

I'll admit it. This is another one of my guilty pleasures in film. Maybe it's the memories I have of seeing it the first time, or maybe, just maybe it is because it is truly a great romantic comedy. I watched pretty much everything that came out when I was in High School - Riverdale Football RULES!!!! - and I admit that because I had a GF for a long spell, I watched some stuff many dudes my age didn't. I'm man enough to be comfortable in the fact that I can enjoy a film like this at 15 years old. When Julianne (Roberts) realizes she may have to carry out with an "agreement"  she made with her best friend Michael (Mulroney) some 10 years earlier. The terms? If both parties were still unmarried and unattached on their 28 birthdays, then they will marry each other. Michael calls her days before his B-day only to tell her he is getting married. It's the classic story of how women don't know what they want until they can't have what they didn't originally want and then they want that...whatever "that" may be...or something like that. She doesn't want to marry Michael even though she does love him. Her disdain for his future wife outweighs her own thoughts on marriage, and now she feels she must end their relationship within the 3 days leading to the nuptials. She is overwhelmed with the thoughts that she missed her window at happiness and will stop at nothing to succeed. The funny thing is, even if successful, once she has what she wants, she probably won't want it anymore. That is Julianne's mentality. Her other BF is a very gay man named George (Rupert Everett). Upon her many shortcomings on her plan, she calls in the big guns to see how Michael may feel about her. She fakes her own engagement with the uber gay George, which gives us one of the best sing alongs in cinema history. If you do not sing along, you just don't get it. She may succeed, but at what cost? She may lose the reason she does all of this, but she is too short sided to realize any of this. At times this film is as happy go lucky as possible, then it gets Real and dark. It has the perfect ending to a great movie and I am watching it right now. Pond Scum? Nope. Lower than that.

NBM rates My Best Friend's Wedding - Awesome

The Good Girl

Somehow this turned into Jennifer Aniston week, and I promise you this will be the third and final post that involves her for at least a little while. This completes the Jen trilogy, and I do believe these are her 3 best movies. This film actually depicts her a plain, unhappy woman stuck in the rut of middle age. She is not unattractive (that's impossible), but she is not glamorous like most of her other roles. Justine (Aniston) has been married for way too long. Her husband, Phil (John C. Reilly) doesn't seem to appreciate her, they are working class-so life is tough, and she is really unhappy. She works at a local department drug store where everyday is the same. Then one day Holden (Gyllenhaal) begins working there. The age difference between them doesn't deter them from having an illicit affair. He adores her, but he has issues of his own. He actually believes he is Holden Caulfield, who is the protagonist from the book, The Catcher in the Rye. She feels guilt at first as anyone would, but she begins to justify her actions to herself. He is falling for her when she feels enough is enough. She and Phil have decided to have a baby, so she thinks it should be over. it was just a phase, and now she will move on with her normal middle American life. She thinks it is behind her, until Phil's best friend Bubba (Tim Blake Nelson) catches her with Holden and threatens to tell Phil. He actually blackmails her which is all too creepy a situation considering the parties involved. With her pregnancy troubles, life has gotten even harder, so when she does get pregnant with the possibility of 3 different men being the Father, she can do nothing but wait. It is depressing, yet heartfelt. She doesn't seem to love Phil anymore, but she doesn't want to do anything to hurt him. It is a great independent film with an all star cast. I do recommend it for anyone who likes movies.

NBM rates The Good Girl - Awesome

Horrible Bosses

I'm not gonna make you wait for an instant honest opinion. It is better than The Hangover Part II. There, I said it. It is smarter, sexier, and more uncomfortable. It is a better story, with a group of actors we might not be able to fathom working together. The final solution is a funny, raunchy, LOL film with a smart story. They did not try and "out gross" The hangover. It did what it should do. It is a stand alone film that should not be compared to anything. It is what it is, and that is all that you need to know... and this too of course, Jennifer Aniston finally gets a role that may shed her Rom-Com carrying persona for more  dark, seedy, sexual roles that can fulfill her talent in more than one way. Her 2 best roles to date are The Good Girl, and Derailed. Add Horrible bosses to that short list for her, and maybe now we can see her expand on her resume'. Of course, beside the many laughs that most of the other actors provide, she provides the sexy with her deviant, dominant, sexual being behind the Dentist tools. She is on the prowl for the man that is her Dental assistant. Dale (Charlie Day) is happily engaged, and is very much about monogamy and loyalty to his fiance'. Julia (Aniston) doesn't care and she wants him. She is a pervert, who talks really, really dirty throughout the film, and I for one found it refreshing. 

Then we have Nick (Bateman), who has had the same crap job with the same crap boss for 8 years. David Harkin (Spacey) is the ultimate prick. I say jump, you say how high. He is constantly making his employees grovel like it is their privilege to work for him. He adds the intensity among our 3 horrible bosses. He is crazy, and is constantly putting Nick in bad situations just to throw it back in his face at a later time. If David is crazy enough, he also thinks his wife is constantly cheating on him, and this makes him even crazier. Spacey perfected the "Bad Boss" in Swimming with Sharks, and this is basically the same character, but I am not complaining. A perfect cast.

Lastly there is Kurt (Sudeikis) who actually loves his job and his boss cameoed by Donald Sutherland. On the other hand, his son Bobby (An overweight Colin Ferrell with a great comb-over) is a coke head who hates the relationship Kurt has with his Father. When Bobby takes over the company, he uses all that past jealousy to make Kurt's life hell. Ferrell does a great job at re-inventing himself as a comedic actor, but he adds in the "lazy prick who now has power" factor to perfection.

With these 3 friends struggling to go to work every day, they devise a plan to kill their bosses. When they decide to sub out the tasks, the movie turns hilarious. Apparently finding a hit man is not so easy. They do get some advice from an always good Jamie Foxx who plays local thug "Mother F-er Jones". At this point they are in it to win it, and the story goes out of control in a great way. I was so surprised at how well done it was, and also "Always Sunny in Philadelphia's" Charlie Day was a breath of fresh air. Sudeikis is funnier than I thought he would be, and Bateman delivers with his Quiet cool pissed uncomfortable person he has perfected. I don't mind that Bateman seems to be the same person in everything he does, because he invented that persona and you can't tell me anyone you may think he is "acting" like. He is original and brilliant. The jokes are funny. I laughed a lot, and I liked it better than the other 2 huge summer comedies we have had this year. Bridesmaids and The Hangover II. I do wonder if Bateman's new movie "The Change Up" will be as good as this? One can only hope. Horrible Bosses is rating R for extremely heavy language. From the opening credits, it never slows up. If you can handle cursing and suggestive sexual innuendo, then don't miss out. I will say that the movie doesn't get as dark as I expected. It stays pretty light hearted, and sticks to what it set out to do.


NBM rates Horrible Bosses - Phenomenal