Movie #369 - Conversations with Other Women

Conversations with Other Women
2005 - Rated R - 1 hr 24 min
Director: Hans Canosa
Starring: Helena Bonham Carter, Aaron Eckhart, Brian Geraghty, Brianna Brown, Thomas Lennon, Olivia Wilde

I'd venture to say that this is probably the most Indie film on this wall.  But I like this one, mostly for the performances of both Eckhart and Carter. I'd watch her play any role, it's true.

Here, they play an ex-married couple who end up at the same wedding, both with the same agenda: have a one-night stand and then go back to their separate lives.  Seems innocent enough... until it gets a little more complicated.  The lesson? Sex complicates things, perhaps.  Or, there's no such thing as closure. 

Most of the movie is shot in a frustrating two-frame fashion, which is distracting at first.  For some scenes though, watching both of their faces and catching simultaneous expressions is totally worth it.  With no "off-camera" time, both actors have to give full-out performances.  And while the movie does get a bit more artsy at times than I usually enjoy, it's not self-indulgent or preachy.  It's just telling a story.

And we just get to watch it.

Movie #146 - The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight
Warner Bros Pictures
2008 - Rated PG-13 - 2 hr 32 min
Director: Christopher Nolan
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Cillian Murphy

If you haven't seen this movie yet.... oh man. Do you live in a cave? How are you reading this post? Honestly, I'm concerned about you. This is a MUST see. MUST. So get out of your cave and go find a rental store... oh wait a minute. You have the internet. Get a Netflix account and download the movie already, for crying out loud.  Watch it in your cave, I don't care. 

There. Much better now.  Now you understand. This movie, from beginning to end and all the way through the middle, is awesome.  Sure, Christian Bale's Batman voice is a little weird. And yeah, the Two-Face plot at the end feels like an afterthought.  But, my God, is Heath Ledger brilliant or what?  Some have said that we only love this movie so much because it was his *last* film (technically, that's not true... ahem, Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, but we're not on I yet.) But if he were still alive (oh....now I'm sad), I'd still think this movie and his performance were frickin' fabulous.

If you're not an action or comic-book-based movie fan, that's fine. You don't have to be to appreciate the artistry of this movie. The tone is perfect, the plotline engaging, and the performances top-notch.  I'm gushing, I know. But I give credit where it's due and - after watching all those 90's Batman movies last month - I'm really glad they decided to give this franchise a re-boot.  And while Heath Ledger will be sorely missed for a long, long time, I'm glad we got this parting gift from him.