Chicken Pox Chronicles : Watching Movies #3

The Good Night (2007). I've watched Vanilla Sky and took a liking for it, but this one, I'm not so sure. A struggling commercial jingle composer having a monotonous life, having these dreams with a beautiful woman in it. He seeks the help of an expert (and a practitioner, who claims to be an expert) to understand his dreams and to manipulate them so he could carry on with these encounters with the beautiful woman. The oddness in his behavior put a strain in his real life relationship and caused the eventual rift between him and his wife. The next thing he learns is that the woman in his dreams is a real person. What now? Hmmmm, maybe it could have been done better. Or maybe, Vanilla Sky was just great.

Lars and the Real Girl (2007). This is an odd movie. About a guy who found social interaction repulsive. One day, his officemate showed him this website on life-size dolls (you know, toys for big boys). He ordered one and made a companion of it-her. It-her even had a name - Bianca. Because Lars was a nice guy, the whole community actually played along with his girlfriend stint - doll on a wheelchair, who according to him was conservative and wouldn't sleep with him until they were married. He had her live with his brother and his pregnant wife. Bianca got a room for herself, and was bathed and dressed much like any ordinary person. Suddenly, Bianca was getting a life of her own, members of the community were asking favors. She was asked to do volunteer work in the hospital reading stories to children (actually holding a talking story book). She also gained friends who bring her to a salon to have her haircut and even shop for new clothes. She got invited to benefits where the invitations were not extended to Lars. Lars, on the other hand, finally noticed this co-worker, who has been giving him some attention in the past. She was kindling a budding relationship with another officemate. And much to my amusement, Lars and Bianca had their first fight when Lars got home following the flirting incident (between the two officemates, that is) You go watch the movie so you know what happens next. Haha!

Leon (1994). This one's been lying around the house for ages. The hubby said it's a good movie. Not much of the serious stunts that you see in action movies these days but a good solid story about a hitman and a girl he took in after her parents were killed in a drug bust operation by some crook cops. Natalie Portman did very well here. And Jean Reno... is Jean Reno, and the twang (again?) just did it for me. And it's by Luc Besson, the same guy behind my favorite, The Fifth Element.

Kite Runner (2007). Picked up this movie after reading about it in time.com. The tagline goes: There is a way to be good again. If you are a mom like me, and you watch a movie about a molested child, you just couldn't help but cry. It just broke my heart.

The Band's Visit (2007). Another foreign film that the hubby got hold of from somewhere. It's just as the title says: the band's visit. An Egyptian police band got invited in Israel to play during the inauguration of an Arab arts center in a remote town. Stubborn to ask assistance from the Egyptian Embassy re their itinerary, they went to look for the town on their own. Of course they ended up in the wrong town and got a taste of the local life. There's the conductor who just wanted to conduct, the new recruit who didn't have the discipline expected of a policeman, the composer who just couldn't finish his masterpiece and the conflicts that people deal with in a quiet town. Nothing grand about this movie, it's worth a nod though.

The Darjeeling Limited (2007). Anything with Bill Murray in it, no matter how small a role he played, is guaranteed twisted. Of course that's just me and I got into that conclusion after watching Lost in Translation. What can I say about this movie.... hmmmm... I think, you should just watch it. Yeah, that's about it. I liked it, but I couldn't quite place the words to describe what I particularly liked about the movie. I just like it. Much like The Royal Tenenbaums, which was also by Wes Anderson. You have to watch it, it's just twisted!

I guess that's just about it, the 16 movies I watched while I was nursing my pineapple face. My scars have all healed but I still get haunted by these movies. Hmmm... can I call in sick again next week?