Puzzle

First Hit: I thoroughly enjoyed this poignant film about a woman finding herself through a passion.

There was a moment in this film when Robert (Irrfan Khan), tells his new jigsaw puzzling partner Agnes’ (Kelly Macdonald), that what makes puzzling so satisfying is that it is one of the few things in life that she can control completely. His dialogue is far more eloquent than how I wrote this previous sentence; however, it doesn’t take away from the truth of it.

Agnes is married to Louie (David Denman) who owns an auto repair business. Their youngest son Gabe (Austin Abrams) is sometimes seen as the “prince” of the two boys because he gets good grades in high-school. The older boy Ziggy (Bubba Weiler) works at his dad’s auto repair garage and is both sullen and lost in life.

Louie runs the show at home because Agnes has served her family as she thought her role was. It is generally felt that she didn’t deserve to have her own desires and wishes paid attention to. In fact, she has totally ignored herself. She takes care of the men in her life doing everything for them, their laundry, grocery shopping, and cooking them their meals. She serves in her church the same way.

At a birthday party gives herself, because no one else would have, she gets an iPhone from her family which she resists and also a 1,000, piece puzzle. Feeling down and acknowledging an inner curiosity, she pulls out the puzzle box and works to solve it.

Watching her solve the puzzle, the audience sees a subtle glow of satisfaction at accomplishing something on her own. A spark has been lit and it was perfectly shared with the audience. Curiously pulling out an old puzzle in the basement she finds that at only 100 pieces, she solves it quickly and with less satisfaction.

Calling the person who gave her the puzzle to find out where it was purchased, she's told that it was at a small store an intersection in New York City. Agnes’ facial expression was perfect. She hadn’t been into NYC for years and had been stuck in her little town. The trip to the city was priceless as the cost of the train and taxi to the little puzzle store, both surprised and intimidated her.

Leaving the shop with two new puzzles, she sees a posting for someone looking for a puzzle partner. She writes down the texting phone number. Sending a text, it gets immediately responded to. She goes back into the city to meet Robert who tells her he’s looking for someone to partner with in a puzzling competition. Taken slightly aback she decides to interview for this partnership by doing a puzzle with and for him. Completing the puzzle in record time, he’s impressed.

This is the films’ set-up. The rest of the film is a wonderfully paced story about how through this puzzling partnership, Agnes discovers her herself and her voice not only towards Robert but also her family. One of the most beautiful scenes was when she goes to help sort out Louie’s invoices and books, when her and Ziggy get into a conversation and he admits, he’d like to be a chef and that is the only thing he really enjoys doing.

There are wonderful scenes of Agnes and Robert puzzling, Agnes using her voice to tell her family subtly and not so subtly that this are changing for her and therefore them. She does this with love in her heart and without anger or malice.

Macdonald was sublime. I was captured by her micro expressions of strength, sadness, love, and guilt. I was fully transfixed on her expressions as well as physical movements. Khan was fantastic as the inventor who fell in love with Agnes and that puzzling filled his life with controlled joy. Denman was perfect as Agnes’ husband in that he felt he was man of the house, charged with making all the decisions, yet his vulnerability was exquisite when he asked if she was having an affair. Abrams was very good as the younger, easy going son who felt a bit entitled. Weiler was amazing as the struggling son, looking for a way through life where he might be happy. Polly Mann and Oren Moverman wrote a strong, true to life, script. Marc Turtletaub, with a light touch, deftly guided this film to wring out wonderful performances from everyone.

Overall: This film was a true surprise in how much I enjoyed Agnes’ journey.

Time Out of Mind

First Hit:  An insightful slow paced film that provides an interesting window into homelessness.

The film opens with cornucopia of noise and a view out of a trashed apartment in NYC. The noise continues through the entire film.

The background conversations and noise had me probing the screen looking to see who was talking or where the noise was coming from respectively. It was relentless and for George (Richard Gere) his 10 years of homeless or, being “temporarily without a home”, the noise adds to his inability to be clear and function. At times he’s clear and functional while at other times he succumbs to the fogginess of his despair and confusion.

As the film moved along, I felt as though this film was made by shooting Gere unrecognized wandering the streets and through homeless shelters of NYC. It was as if the cameras were shooting him from a distance and the people in the streets had no idea it was Gere. We learn during the film that his daughter Maggie (Jena Malone) doesn’t want to have anything to do with him and his attempts to see her are rebuffed.

The back story is shared with fellow homeless man Dixon (Ben Vereen). Dixon can’t stop talking which adds to the noise in George’s life. During one of their walks George tells Dixon what he remembers, his wife dying from cancer, his losing his job, drinking, losing his home, his daughter being raised elsewhere and going down a rabbit hole.

The scenes in the shelters and many of them on the street were really strong. When watching this film, one has to be patient as it moves at its own slow pace and everything unfolds slowly and realistically, just as in life.

Gere is really great. I loved his looking intelligent and at home within himself, yet barely holding on to what is next – wonderful juxtapositions. Malone is very good as Gere’s daughter. She has an edge of anger, sadness, and determination to not being dragged into George’s life again. Vereen is fantastic. His constant conscious stream of dialogue is perfectly like some of the homeless people I’ve befriended. Steve Buscemi as a building manager was perfect. Oren Moverman wrote the screen play and also directed the film. At first I was annoyed at the noise in the film, but quickly realized how it really made this film work.

Overall:  At the end of the film, I felt I’d been through a really good experience and got a view into homelessness.

Love & Mercy

First Hit:  Acting and story was extremely heartfelt while riding the ups and downs of Brian Wilson’s life.

I fondly recall The Beach Boys because I was a beach oriented guy myself in the 1960's.

In 1964 when the Beatles came into the musical consciousness of my life, there was a conflict of who was better. By the Beatles "Revolver", I knew the Beatles had risen to the top. This was partially because of the type of music, but also because of the struggles The Beach Boys were having internally as a group. The focus of those struggles, Brian Wilson, the genius behind the music. He wanted to take the group in a different direction than what they had done in the past.

This film documents Brian of the early years (Paul Dano) and the Brian of the mid 1990’s (John Cusack). Brian, Carl, and Dennis Wilson (Brett Davern and Kenny Wormald respectively) where brought up by a very mean, aggressive and extremely abusive father, Murry (Bill Camp). It effected Brian the most because he was the songwriter and leader of the group.

In his later years after spending an infamous 2 years in bed, Brian he was then controlled and manipulated by a psychiatrist named Dr. Eugene Landy (Paul Giamatti). The visual likeness of Landy and Murray was amazing and was telling how Brian fell into Landy’s fold. Then there was Melinda (Elizabeth Banks) a Cadillac selling girl who sees Brian as a sensitive honest human being. Her relationship helps Brian to free himself from Landy and his life begins again.

Paul Dano was absolutely amazing at being the young Wilson by giving us a Brian who was always on the edge of sanity. He even looked a lot like a young Brian. Cusack was very strong as the older Brian attempting to find his way back into usefulness. Camp was good as the oppressive and abusive father. Giamatti was almost over the top at the unhinged psychiatrist who controlled Brian for his own purposes. Banks was inspiring and really good as the woman who could see Brian for more than what Dr. Landy was presenting. Michael A. Lerner wrote a fantastic script. Oren Moverman did an amazing job of creating a biography film that was both interesting and compelling to watch.

The music was fantastic; the story even better.

Rampart

First Hit: Outstanding acting performance by Woody Harrelson in a non-glorious role and story.

Set in 1999, love the cell phone and antenna, this story is about a renegade cop from the Rampart Division of the LAPD.

This division was going through extremely tough times from internal mismanagement, theft, and public scrutiny of their police practices. Dave Brown (Harrelson) smokes all the time, never eats, drinks too much and numbs himself with drugs.

His family includes two ex-wives Catherine and Barbara (Anne Heche and Cynthia Nixon respectively) and two daughters, one from each. They all live together while Dave lives in a small apartment unattached from the house the others live in. This is his family and he thinks he’s responsible for everyone in this family.

His police department moniker is Date Rape Dave for his hand in killing what was perceived as a date rapist.

The opening scene, where he is speaking with two other cops from Rampart Division at a parking lot food stand, sets up Dave perfectly. He thinks he’s king of the hill, all knowing, in-charge and operating almost as an independent contractor. At one point he is driving in his car and is hit broadside. He gets out of the car, seemingly to find out what is going on and the driver of the other car abruptly opens his door and hits Dave. Then the perpetrator starts running away. Dave catches him and is filmed beating him almost to death.

This makes all the news stations and becomes yet another PR nightmare for LAPD. Dave is smart, won’t retire and doesn’t back down from his departments’ investigative team.

They are after him. It is clear that they can make him part of the Rampart problem and they can make him the focus of other problems as well. His family wants him gone because they cannot stand the public scrutiny and all things are stacking up against him.

There are some shots here in this film I found fascinating, specifically; when Dave and LAPD department heads and Dave’s lawyer all are talking in an office and the camera just goes in a circular clockwise motion from person to person. This was extremely effective in relaying the tenseness of the discussion and the circles we can create in conversations and the way conversations can go round and round.

The scenes, dialogue and references to actual issues of the time created a well focused film.

Dave’s belief that he is the guardian of our time and LA is profound and extremely well done by Harrelson.

Harrelson shows why he is an amazing actor. Look at his resume from "Natural Born Killers" to "Zombieland" to "Friends with Benefits" to "The People vs. Larry Flynt" to "White Men Can’t Jump", he has a wide range and each time the audience knows he is invested in the part. Heche is great as one of Brown’s wives, the one who is more emotional about the relationship. Nixon is good as the other, more centered, wife. Brie Larson as Helen, one of the daughters is very strong is reflecting the life she has. Sigourney Weaver as Joan Confrey and part of the LAPD team investigating Brown is powerful in her role and a great addition to this film. Robin Wright as Linda Fentress is an attorney who tricks Brown into sex and information is great. Ned Beatty as Hartshorn a former police officer is downright great as a puppeteer pulling the strings. James Ellroy and Oren Moverman wrote a very strong script. Moverman really nailed this script and the characterization of this real life character.

Overall:  This film is dark, has little joy, but is relentless in providing a strong and clear picture of a man digging deeper into his own hole.

The Messenger

First Hit: A powerful well executed film of one of the most difficult jobs anyone can have, notifying the next of kin.

Ben Foster plays Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery, a wounded Iraqi war veteran, who was cited as a hero although he believes differently. He is receiving treatment stateside for his wounds and is assigned duty to inform next of kin that someone has died while in the service of action for their country.

He is teamed with Captain Tony Stone (played by Woody Harrelson) who is a veteran in delivering this message to the next of kin. He lives by the rule book of how to deliver the message and informs Montgomery, there is no deviation from delivering the message as stated in the manual.

Stone believes in the importance of delivering the message right and tells Montgomery that learning the script and process is different than the actual intensity of saying it to the next of kin. Stone is a recovering alcoholic and suffers from not serving in intense armed action, the kind of war experience by Montgomery.

Montgomery is deeply pained by the effects of war, his actions and his girlfriend who picked up a new boyfriend after he headed to Iraq. This film is about two men bonding around one of the most difficult jobs anyone will ever have to do.

This film is also about the depth and wide ranging reactions of the people they visit to deliver the line: “The Secretary of the Army regrets to inform you that …” Each one of the scenes where they deliver this message is different, harrowing, and filled with grief, anger and sadness.

Foster is wonderful as a vet slowly learning how to make connections with people again. Harrelson, again, shows his ability to embrace a wide range of parts and here he fully embodies the vet who will stay in the Army for a long time, believes in what he does, is crass but caring partner. Samantha Morton, as Olivia Pitterson, is insightful, deep and reflective as a widow who loses her husband. Lastly Steve Buscemi is superb as a father who loses his son, takes it out on The Messenger but finally reconciles his grief to bring it full circle. The director Oren Moverman uses lighting, camera movement, and the characters to effectively move this story along. One clear indication of his skills was when Montgomery is talking to another war vet just back from Iraq outside a bar. The lighting is especially effective because it paints both of the deeply troubled soldiers with a back fuzzy haze around their bodies on the wall they are standing near. This shadow exemplifies and accurately expresses their own deep and dark shadows, feelings, and thoughts.

Overall: Make no mistake, this is a poignant powerful film and brings to light one of the saddest duties for soldiers of war.