Reign Over Me (2007)

4/5

Mike Binder's Reign Over Me is an emotionally satisfying if not deeply complex movie. The story follows the relationship between former college roommates Alan Johnson (Don Cheadle) and Charlie Fineman (in a surprisingly competent performance by Adam Sandler), a man whose life was turned upside down after his entire family died in the September 11 attacks. The story is simple, predictable, but heartfelt. The diverse panoply of characters was intriguing, but I felt it distracted too much from the emotional crux of the story. I really loved the music choices; they were effective without being overpowering. I especially loved BJ Novak's small role, although it was vastly overshadowed by Donald Sutherland's cameo. The cinematography was beautiful, but I hated the editing--too many fades that ruined the pacing and completely took me out of the movie. Even so, I suggest you check it out if you saw the trailer or a commercial or read this review and got interested in it; I doubt you'll be disappointed.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0490204/

Ali (2001)

4/5

I knew nothing about Muhammad Ali's life story going in, so this movie was a very eye-opening experience for me. I like how the movie wasn't simply a boxing movie, but really dug into all aspects of his character, including the social and political realms he affected. His motto, "float like a butterfly, sting like a bee," could describe this movie as well. It flows naturally from scene to scene buoyantly and then strikes the viewer hard when the fight scenes occur. Technically, this movie matches Mann's other works. The crisp and beautiful cinematography by Lubezki is exceptional in this piece, bringing a visceral realism to the fights and ethereal fluidity to the rest. The music was spot-on, although sometimes a bit too prevalent. The acting by all parties was outstanding, although I think Smith's acting in the title role was slightly too weak to carry the entire picture (although quite strong overall). But it was really fun to hear Ali trash-talk.

It did have quite a few problems as well, I thought. It was too long. It meandered in meaningless areas that I never really cared for (although more knowledgeable fans might have found them interesting) and unexplained subplots. A firm sense of time and place was never really achieved. There were no dates or locations to inform the audience; the only markers were social events like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.'s deaths. The problem with the amazing cinematography was that Mann got too enamored of it, unable to cut parts out to keep the piece tight. The editing was competent for the most part, but failed to impress. Other than these minor squabbles, though, I really liked the film.

IMDb link: http://imdb.com/title/tt0248667/