White women with different kinds of problems

I've been away for the last few days, and while I usually like to blog while on vacation, this was more of a trying to find a goddamn job-stressful trip, so no dice. But I did watch a few movies with friends, and a few of them were about white ladies with problems, to varying effect. The Hours won Nicole Kidman abest actress Oscar for her performance as Virginia Woolf, but I wasn't impressed. In fact, I wasn't impressed with the movie much at all, except for the section starring Julianne Moore as a repressed 50s housewife. In fact, I found Kidman as Woolf and Meryl Streep as the contemporary version of Woolf's Mrs. Dalloway incredibly selfish and irritating. I understand the feminist interpretation of mental illness, but I don't think it was explored in any meaningful, interesting way in this film. I was bored while watching it; I think my liberal arts education ruined for me any possible enjoyment of anything with rich white people constantly complaining. 4/10 This Girl's Life is the flip, more interesting side of the coin. Juliette Marquis, who looks, acts, and just seems like Angelina Jolie (in a good way), gives a fearless performance as major porn star Moon, who is caring for her Parkinson's-afflicted father and considering getting out of the business. She's not afraid to appear naked, to simulate sex, to talk dirty, and to show real emotion and vulnerability. This really should have been an it-girl-making performance for Marquis, so I'm unsure as to why she's falled off the map. The other actors in the film are solid as well: James Woods as the father, who one moment is shaky and unsure of what's going on, and another is telling dirty stories about visiting Morocco as a lawyer; Kip Pardue as a sweet, understanding new boyfriend; and Michael Rappaport as an obsessive man who comes into strange contact with Moon. This is a strong, fearless film about a strong woman who isn't sure what she wants, and one that I recommend for those interested in the adult film industry or just offbeat character studies. 7.5/10

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3 quick ones

You know, this wasn't actually that bad. Especially if you fit one or both of these qualifications: you can see bad horror movies in the theater and generally be entertained (especially if you are with a friend who gets scared easily), and you like Jessica Alba. Thankfully, I am in both categories. There are actually some pretty good jumps, and creepy imagery. Obviously, there could have been more, but for a PG-13 horror movie, you really couldn't do too much better than this. Well, you probably could. But still. 5.5/10 The Experiment, based on the Stanford Prison Experiment (even though a confusing screen at the beginning says it's not based on anything whatsoever), starts out really tense and enjoyable. Twenty men volunteer to take part in a psychological study where 8 are made prison guards and 12 are prisoners for 14 days. Things start lightly enough, with the prisoners making fun of the guards, but when everyone starts taking their roles seriously, things go really wrong. The first half of the film is intense, especially when you consider that this is a German film, and the Germans have an interesting (to say the least) history with follow-the-leader mentality. But the second half just goes over the top and loses its grip on reality. Sure, it would be less spectacular if things didn't become so explosive, but it also could have been more of a creepy, subtle character study. 6.5/10 Considered to be Fellini's masterpiece, I was a little...underwhelmed. It's not that it's not a great movie, because it is. Rather, I found myself less emotionally invested in these shallow people than in, say, Nights of Cabiria. Marcello Mastroianni is predictably fantastic as Marcello Rubini, a jaded gossip journalist who wanders around 1960 Rome, cheating on his suicidal girlfriend with a friend and then a Swedish actress (even though they don't really speak the same language). You can't take your eyes off of Anita Ekberg as the actress, but you don't feel for her, either. I did, however, find the last half hour incredibly depressing and touching; Marcello has lost touch with any sense of humanity he might have had -- is it the soul-crushing nature of his job, his alcoholism, his inability to be faithful to one woman, or something else? Certainly a film that has to be seen, but let me down a tiny bit. 8/10

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