Promised Land

First Hit:  A film with a message about change in the United States.

How long will small towns survive in the United States, especially when work has gone wanting? How will they feed their families, send their children to college, and continue the life that was once mostly farming.

Steve Butler (played by Matt Damon) comes from one of those towns and he saw how his family lost their home and farm. He works for “Global” which leases farms where there are natural gas deposits, by giving the farmer a financial down payment and part of the profits from the gas they extract from the property.

The issue is that the system they use is called “fracking” which uses water and chemicals in their drilling to break up the shale and release the natural gas trapped in the shale. Problem is that it can contaminate the groundwater.

Steve is excellent at getting people to sign these leases because he’s honest and believes in giving people another option for their land. He's been through it and therefore believes in what his is doing. His co-worker, Sue Thompson (played by Frances McDormand), is his partner and is good at selling the leases. During the “selling” of the townsfolk in a community meeting at the gym, one of their townsfolk Frank Yates (played by Hal Holbrook) tells of the dangers of fracking. Steve indicates that there may be issues but Global takes the necessary precautions.

Then there is Dustin (played by John Krasinski) who rides into town in a light green truck representing Athena Environmental Group. He pushes for the townsfolk to vote against Global. It becomes a battle of wills, the truth and what is right between Dustin and Steve.

The battle is about the use of fracking and Alice (played by Rosemarie DeWitt) a local, pretty and eligible school teacher.

Damon, as usual, is outstanding. He plays the earnest thoughtful man who is willing to learn more about himself, and does this better than any actor I’ve seen. McDormand is wonderful as the sidekick who also frets about how much time she is spending away from her son. Holbrook’s resurgence as an actor in film has been wonderful and this performance continues to show his fine abilities. DeWitt is good as the attractive kind woman that captures the heart of the lead. Titus Welliver (as a store owner) is fantastic as the amused and interesting store owner. John Krasinski and Matt Damon wrote a wonderful and thoughtful script. Gus Van Sant’s direction was very good and some of the shots are absolutely brilliant.

Overall:  This was a thoughtful film and continues to have me asking questions about what small towns will do as farming is being taken over by conglomerates and manufacturing is being moved offshore.

Moonrise Kingdom

First Hit:  Quirky, fun, and interesting while blending stylistic filming to deliver a poignant message of hope and love.

The cast is stellar with the big names in supporting roles. You have Edward Norton (as Scout Master Ward), Bruce Willis (as Captain Sharp), Bill Murray (as Walt Bishop), Frances McDormand (as Laura Bishop), Harvey Keitel (as Commander Pierce), Tilda Swinton (as Social Services), Jason Schwartzman (as Cousin Ben), and Bob Balaban (as the Narrator).

The film is about Suzy Bishop (played by Kara Hayward) who is a troubled young girl and Sam (played by Jared Gilman) a young orphan boy who is determined to live his life his way making him an outcast.

The Narrator begins the film by talking straight to the camera setting up the story of the mythical island of New Penzance its history and that a historic storm will soon envelop it. We are slowly introduced to the characters that are living and working on the island through stylistic mid 1960s scene edits and tones which are almost comic, but blazingly consistent, thoughtful and enjoyable throughout.

This film follows Sam and Suzy as they find each other, realize they can connect with each other, and their choice to journey together. Yes they are only 12 years old, but the point is some people feel really at a loss and lost in their life and people around them, but when they connect with someone else, there is a strong and compelling reason to stay together, to live.

Hayward is bold and evoking as Suzy a girl who struggles with feelings and the expression of them. Gilman as Sam is equally strong as the young boy who is going to live his path regardless of what grownups do. Together they were fabulous. Norton was sublime as the Khaki Scout Master who is charged with training Sam. I loved his acknowledgement of the wonderful camp Sam and Suzy set up. Willis was very low key in his self-effacing character who is just plodding along. Murray was very good as Suzy’s concerned dis-attached father. McDormand was excellent as the dis-jointed lonely mother of Suzy. Swinton was funny, bold and poignantly mean as Social Services. Schwartzman was really funny and good as Cousin Ben. Keitel was good as the head of Khaki Scout Masters and Ward’s boss. Balaban was the perfect choice as Narrator because he brought an informational serious undertone that bordered on dark comedy. Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola wrote a stunning script while Anderson’s clear vision brought it all together.

Overall: This was an excellent film to watch because it tells a wonderful story.

Burn After Reading

First Hit: Although it wasn’t over-the-top funny, it was clever and quirky enough to keep me entertained and engaged.

This film has a big named cast with George Clooney, John Malkovich, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, and Brad Pitt.

The basic premise is that Linda (played by McDormand) desperately wants a man in her life and needs money to have four cosmetic surgical procedures to make her beautiful and enticing. She works at a gym called Hardbodies along with Chad (played by Pitt) who is a comical, simple, goofy, and a good looking trainer.

They find a CD in the locker room with some financial information and the memoirs by a CIA agent written by Osborne Cox (played Malkovich). Linda and Chad try to blackmail Cox for the information on the CD. Cox, who was recently fired by the CIA as an analyst because of his drinking, is angry at his former bosses and his wife Katie (played by Swinton) who is a cold calculating woman.

Katie is planning to divorce “Ozzie” because she is happier screwing U.S. Marshal Harry (played by Clooney). Harry is married to a children’s book author who travels a lot so he has many affairs by dating people he meets on the internet, including Linda and Katie.

As the blackmail plan unfolds Linda and Chad find out the data on the CD is useless to anyone but Cox. From this premise the rest of the film is filled with more affairs, killings, and plot twists.

The Coen Brothers keep the film tight and crisp in its execution. The writing is also, crisp, to the point and the actors clearly (especially Pitt) seemed to enjoy their roles.

Overall: This was a funny movie but not a over-the-top really funny movie.

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day

First Hit: This is a delightful funny period piece with great sets and excellent acting from both Amy Adams and Frances McDormand.

Amy Adams, playing Delysia Lafosse, is absolutely delightful, fun and engaging as a high energy socialite who is playing three men against each other hoping to find an engagement or arrangement that will make her famous and wealthy.

Miss Pettigrew, played by Frances McDormand, is an out of work governess/nanny looking for another job. She has reasons as to why she’s lost all her previous jobs but the agency just cannot risk placing her any longer.

Miss Pettigrew finds herself on the streets of London with a stolen lead from the agency. Going up to the gorgeous flat as identified from this stolen lead, she knocks on the door and finds herself face to face with the high energy Delysia.

Delysia immediately asks Miss Pettigrew the time and realizes the flat’s owner will soon be home and the place is a mess and someone isn’t awake yet. Miss Pettigrew’s first task is to wake Delysia’s boy who, Miss Pettigrew soon finds out, is really a grown naked lover.

Miss Pettigrew makes her mark with Delysia by being quick on her feet by helping her deal with the three men in her life and becomes anointed as her social secretary.

What Miss Pettigrew does is teach Delysia to listen to her heart and move away from making herself available to men just to advance her career. Miss Pettigrew also finds joy along the way.

Overall: Both actresses are great in their roles and play off each other extremely well. This is a light hearted film and some of the sets are extremely well done and bring to life the 1930s.