Saturday, September 21, 2013

Prisoners

This movie starred Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenwhatsits.  Jake plays a cop with a neck tattoo.  I didn't think that was very realistic, and kind of pulled me out of the film.  But other than that it was an interesting film with twists that caught me off guard.  I usually have a hunch about what is going to happen in a movie and was pleasantly surprised to find out my hunch was wrong about this movie. They make you think one character is a bad guy but it turns out he is just a troubled victim.  Interesting.  David Dastmalchian does a great job in this movie.  He plays the troubled victim.  Of course Hugh Jackman's character mistakenly kidnaps someone after his daughter is kidnapped so maybe the theme of the film is mistaken kidnappings.  I enjoyed the rationalization of the actual culprit that they wanted to teach parents that god was bad after their son had died.  Victims being victimized by police and by the parents of the victims.

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Lee Daniel's The Butler

This movie was an interesting overview of the Civil Rights movement in the US from the 50s through to today.  The film was inspired by a Washington Post article written about the White House butlers and their take on Barack Obama being elected president.  Forest Whitaker did an amazing performance as a long suffering fellow.  Oprah Winfrey was his pain in the ass wife.  Whitaker's. character showed the travails of the 30s through to the 50s.  His two sons were used as vehicles to show the 60s through to the present.