Fast & Furious (2009)

2/5

Fast & Furious is a movie I started watching around midnight, extremely tired, and it was not exciting enough to prevent me from nodding off several times throughout. It's a much-needed reboot of the franchise after the almost-universally maligned Tokyo Drift. While the following two sequels (Fast Five and Fast & Furious 6) are more traditional action films, this one maintains its origins as a street racing movie and sprinkles a touch of drug running into the mix. I can't say I remember much of the plot, but I think it's safe to say that it was pretty standard for this type of film (i.e., forgettable). The script was bland and the acting was limp. And, unlike the later sequels, it didn't have The Rock to save it. If only Fast & Furious 6 weren't so amazing, then I wouldn't have felt compelled to come back and revisit the whole series.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1013752/

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

4/5

David O. Russell's Silver Linings Playbook is a delightful and surprising treasure. The story follows Pat (Cooper) on the day of his release from an 8-month stint at a psychiatric hospital. We discover that he has delusional bipolar disorder, that he hates taking his meds, and that he's trying to win his wife back (although she has a restraining order against him). He moves back in with his parents (De Niro, Weaver) while he continues his rehabilitation with a psychiatrist (Kher). On a dinner date with his best friend (Ortiz), he meets Tiffany (Lawrence) and they share an undeniable connection--while talking about the pros and cons of different psych meds. What happens next I'll leave for you to experience firsthand.

The writing and the acting are the film's strongest aspects. The story and dialogue are just the right amount of quirky and comedic to balance its darker tones of mental illness and dysfunctional families. Cooper and Lawrence both give knockout performances that are joys to watch: equal parts ferocity and vulnerability, strength and tenderness. Cooper's violent outbursts are matched by his emotional pain. Lawrence is mature and assured but also naive and scared. They are complex and real, and their chemistry is electric. There is an unexpectedly exhilarating dance number in the movie that has you stunned while watching it, on the edge of your seat and with a grin on your face, worried about the past but excited for the future. It was sensational. But the movie should have ended there, because after that it devolved into a contemporary romantic comedy happily ever after instead of giving us something novel and unique like before.

As a film, Silver Linings Playbook failed to impress me. The shots were mediocre and the editing was substandard. The camerawork was a bit too self-indulgent for me, with almost every shot pushing in or pulling back. And I just can't get rid of how disappointed that ending made me. But none of that invalidates what makes this movie so special. Everything about it just pulsates with life and vitality, enriching our own lives by watching it, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1045658

Jack Goes Boating (2010)

4/5

The plot of Jack Goes Boating focuses on the blossoming relationship between Jack (Hoffman) and Connie (Ryan) and the slowly disintegrating marriage of their close friends Clyde (Ortiz) and Lucy (Rubin-Vega). The movie is based off a play of the same name (with Hoffman reprising his stage role). Some of it feels much better suited to a film than a play while some of it follows the opposite logic. Its theatrical roots are very clearly evident: the whole movie is basically a collection of conversations with the occasional city shot interspersed between people talking about the events going on in their lives. We witness very little with our own eyes. I wish Hoffman had spent more time in the adaptation so that this film shows instead of tells. However, there were two things about the film that could not be replicated on stage. One was the close-up shots of the characters (because Hoffman "wanted to see them think") and the second was the "visualizations" that Jack does to prepare himself for a new endeavor. This one scene sticks out in my head where we see Jack leave his swim practice and walk over a bridge. He stops in the middle, looks out at the cars passing underneath, and lowers his head. He closes his eyes and suddenly he is in a swimming pool. We see what he sees and then we see it blend with the reality of his situation--and it is a remarkably poignant moment.

The best thing I can say about this movie is that it stays with you. As seems to be more and more common with independent films, the two leads are awkward and risk-averse, fearful of relationships due to perceptions of their own quirks and shortcomings. I left the theater not thinking much of them, but the characters wouldn't leave my mind. I began to see the depth and realism imbued in the actors' performances, and the tragedy and the hope that their stories bring. It made an impact on me. The romance between Jack and Connie is tender and heartfelt, the frustration between Clyde and Lucy is left appropriately below the surface, but you can see them struggling at every moment to maintain the appearance of a wonderful marriage. And despite some of the film's flaws, I think that the movie's ultimate goal was to make the audience think and wonder about the life of the characters before the movie begins and after the movie ends. It succeeds on that point admirably well.

Philip Seymour Hoffman's directorial debut is surprisingly adept visually, but on the whole was not as impressive as I was hoping it would be. Apart from certain shots and visual flairs, most of the cinematic elements simply serve the purpose of turning this play into a movie, and have no inherent artistic quality in and of themselves. It's not a poor first feature by any means, but it's certainly not the best I've seen. Watch it if you are a fan of Philip Seymour Hoffman or indie romances with oddball characters, but understand that it may not be exactly what you expect.

IMDb link: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1278379/