at the movies
February 7, 2010
I haven’t been at the theaters lately – yes, even in this Avatar-world. I had enough fun behind my laptop though. A selection of what hit my screen.
Away We Go: 3
A movie that should’ve been a love fest for the indiecrowd, but it didn’t go over that well. All the ingredients are in place though: writing credits go to Dave Eggers, it stars Kim Krawinski (Jim from The Office) sporting a beard, nice acoustic tunes by Alexi Murdoch and sober but smooth directing by Sam Mendes. It’s about a couple expecting a baby and are looking for a place to settle down. So they go off on a trip around the US and visit cities and their friends to make a decision where to settle down. It begins as a quirky comedy and touches some dramatic tones at the end. I liked that the characters are pretty unique for a movie (just regular people with no big problems, just dealing with life as it is) but it felt a bit pointless at the end. Hmm, maybe that’s the point of life as well…
The King of Kong: 4,5
Hilarious documentary about the arcade game scene. A science teacher wants to break the world record of Donkey Kong and this leads him into an extraordinary world full of nerdy gamers who are even weirder than your worst expectations. World champion Billy Mitchell stands out as the haughty All American Champ. A classic character in my book and a real life version of David Brent. Give this man his own show!
Crumb: 4
Fascinating portrait of cartoonist Robert Crumb. He talks at length about his upbringing, his work and his obsessions. His cartoons are as funny as they are shocking (portrayals of fat women, dark women). It’s very interesting is to compare Robert with his dysfunctional brothers, as a case for the importance of art and having a creative outlet. Director Terry Zwigoff went on to direct fictional dramas about outcasts such as Ghost World and Art School Confidential.
Funny People: 3,5
I can’t stand Seth Rogen (that monotonous voice!), and I can say the same about Adam Sandler. So I was pleasantly surprised by this dark comedy/bittersweet drama by Judd Apatow in which these two guys play the lead characters. The flawed second part, where the story suddenly only concentrates on the love angle, doesn’t diminish the strong opening act. It gives an intimate view on the stand-up comedy world of L.A. and Sandler gives a great performance as a narcistic, self loathing-comedian. The movie doesn’t want to be liked and that’s what makes it good.
