Movie Log

Being at home sick would have been a a real drag if it weren't for a few good movies i got to watch...


CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND

George Clooney's diretorial debut. Been wanting to see it for quite some time. Couldn't catch it in the theatres. Got it at home. It's got some real awesome performances. Sam Rockwell is great as Chuck Barris. George Clooney is dead on, and Drew Barrymore chips in too. Though they could have gotten someone else for Julia Robert's role.

At times, i couldn't really follow what was going on, but it did make for interesting viewing. Some of my friends who saw it in the theater couldn't really understand the movie, and i guess you do need to have a certain idea as to what the movie is about, before watching it. And some familiarity with american game-shows wouldn't hurt either. Here's the story. Chuch Barris was a game-show producer, very successful. In his autobiography he claimed the CIA recruited him as a hitman. he killed about 33 people. Simple enought.

The movie has some real offbeat pacing. Barris's rise to fame is portrayed pretty fast. And way too much time is devoted to his bed-time habits, if ya catch my drift. His recruitement could have been more impactful too. But hey, the direction's great! Very entertaining. Makes me wanna read the book..


MATCHSTICK MEN

This one, i just finished it. Had seen the trailer for it when i'd gone to see Terminator 3, and it seemed pretty intriguing. And the was prety damn good. Heck, it was so good it would probably blow your socks off if you wore any..

Nicholas Cage. Man, can this dude act or what! His neurotic, eye-twitching con-artist role is so deftly handled it's hard to believe he's just acting, and that off screen he's just a normal everyday dude. Sam Rockwell as his partner, very understated. Very cool. and finally Alison Lohman (that her name?) as his 14 year old daughter. Very expressive and very convincing.

The story? Cage and Rockwell are conmen. Cage is kinda neurotic. Rockwell gets him a shrink, who convinces Cage to get in touch with his wife, whom he left 14 years ago. She wont meet him, but the daughter will. And then his world turns upside down.

I found it hard to believe that after meeting her dad for the first time in 14 years, and girl could relate to him so easily, but that's explained in the ending. And whoohoo!! What a knockout of a conclusion!! it was great!! Totally made up for the relatively slow pace of the movie. And if anyone's wondering what Matchstick Men stands for, it means conmen.