Review LXIII - Punch-Drunk Love

Review LXIII
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)

There's only one Adam Sandler film I can say I like, and that is Billy Madison. Mind you, I have not seen it in years, and, when I did re-watch it that second time many years ago, it was mostly just the nostalgic feeling I got that kept me from turning off the film. I don't necessarily recall The Wedding Singer being that bad, but I never watched it fully, so I'm not including it on the list. Anyway, all this is to say that Adam Sandler's films have been the pits. They focus on stupid humour, and, while I can appreciate stupid humour once in a blue moon, Grown Ups and the like really make me pull out my hair. Still, there is one film that Adam Sandler has appeared in that almost got him an Oscar nomination. Are we talking about the right guy here? Yes, we are, and the film is Paul Thomas Anderson's Punch-Drunk Love starring Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Luis Guzmán, and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Barry Egan (Adam Sandler), the owner of a company specialising in toilet plungers that are immune to breakage, witnesses an intense car accident one morning, along with the dropping of a harmonium. A woman, Lena Leonard (Emily Watson), also stops by as her car has broken down, asking if Barry would mind making sure the mechanic gets around to it. This encounter brings light into Barry Egan's life, amidst the crazy sex hotline worker out to get him and his seven arrogant and domineering sisters.

Considering this film sold itself as a romantic comedy-drama, I was a little surprised, at first, at how surreal this was. It definitely isn't your typical romantic comedy. I wouldn't even call it that comedic. It had some pretty outrageous scenes where you can't help but laugh, but, most of the time, I was cringing at how bad Barry was treated. Either way, this film is different, which is expected from Paul Thomas Anderson. The plot itself is very different. It had some weird dialogue, but given the peculiar characters, it fits well. The acting is done very well, and this might be because Adam Sandler is actually legitimately acting well. There was no cringing involved when he was in a scene, unless it was because I felt bad for his character. The rest of the acting I cannot complain about. It was well done. Again, they were all able to capture the surreal feel very well. The cinematrography is, I find, quite contrast-y, and was filmed with a speak stock film which gave a really strong shadow front. This also gives Punch-Drunk Love a very surreal touch to it. Still, if there is one thing I can praise the film for, it would be its shots. Oh my, there are some magnificent shots in this film. If you want to see a film that has wonderful cinematography, check this one out. Even if the plot doesn't catch your eye, and the characters, a bit flimsy, the way this movie was shot - it's a keeper.

I'd give the film seven point seven on ten. The plot wasn't the best, though the characters could be quite meaningful. Nonetheless, the cinematography is to die for. It's definitely worth a viewing if ever you're looking for a weird but slightly cute film.

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Review LI - The Last Stand

Review LI
The Last Stand (2013)

I just realised I haven't watched a Korean film since the end of September. Still, I haven't forgotten the familiar faces that Korean cinema has brought to me. When I saw that The Last Stand was being directed by Kim Ji-woon, I was ecstatic and made it a must-see for 2013. Well, it came out yesterday, so today was as good a day as any to see Arnold Schwarzenegger in his first leading role since 2003. The film also stars Forest Whitaker, Luis Guzmán, Jaimie Alexander, Rodrigo Santoro, Johnny Knoxville, and Eduardo Noriega.

Ray Owens (Arnold Schwarzenegger) worked in Los Angeles, California (as GOVERNATOR) at one time as a big-time police officer, but has since displayed to Sommerton, Arizona to escape the brutality that he once saw. The police department here consists of only three other people - Sarah Torrance (Jaimie Alexander), Mike Figuerola (Luis Guzmán), and Jerry Bailey (Zach Gilford) - and they're not really the most compotent bunch. Sarah stays back at the police station to watch over her ex-boyfriend, Frank Martinez (Rodrigo Santoro), who is supposed to be kept beyond bars for the weekend for driving under the influence of alcohol. The rest of the game travels to Lewis Dinkum's (Johnny Knoxville) museum in order to take shots at slabs of beef. Everything seems to be under control until Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega), an infamous drug lord, escapes from custody at the hands of Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker) and his federal agents while being convoyed. Now he's heading to the Mexican border via Sommerton, but he's in for a bigger fight than he thought.

The film appeals to the action-lover, that's for sure. It has an epically fast car (I don't know cars, so there's probably a better one, but I'm limited here. The car is a Chevrolet Corvette C6 ZR1) with intense car chases, it has gun fights with tons of blood and explosions (okay, at least one), and Arnold Schwarzenegger! The plot itself isn't anything spectacular, you know, typical action plot that leads to the most action and craziness as possible. It was crazy, but it was entertaining, and since that is what the film was aiming for, it succeeded. Slight spoiler... I did, though, wonder throughout the whole film how Gabriel Cortez's group made a bridge themselves leading into Mexico. Sure, it's a narrow canyon, but it's not a metre long either. I don't understand how not one single person saw them working on this bridge because it must have taken a while. The materials they had to order to, and making sure they had a great engineer so the bridge wouldn't collapse. Also, now that the bridge is there, will they have to set up another border crossing area? Or will they just demolish the bridge? I'm mostly doing this is a joke now, but this demonstrates that it is a typical action film because it has these pretty far-fetched schemes. I'm willing to suspend my disbelief for the film, though. It did what I expected - entertainment. However, I thought that, initially, there was a lot of swearing for no reason coming from Agent John Bannister. I don't know, it wasn't in particularly consist throughout the film, and it seemed useless at the beginning. There were also some pretty bad lines. Well, alright, maybe only one, and it was the "that ass" line coming from one of Gabriel Cortez's goons, Burrell, played by Peter Stormare (he's in the Big Lebowski! Whaaat!). It just seemed so out of place and ugly. Ugh, I still shudder at it.

I don't really have anything else to say about the film, so I might as well give my rating. I'd give it a seven point five on ten. It was entertaining, nothing more, nothing less, and if you're looking for an easy movie to watch, I recommend this one. Thank you, Kim Ji-woon, for making an English-speaking film - I can finally support you by seeing your film in theatres.