Tag: Romance

Home Again (2017)
PG-13 | 1h 37min | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 8 September 2017 (USA)

Life for a single mom in Los Angeles takes an unexpected turn when she allows three young guys to move in with her.
Director: Hallie Meyers-Shyer
Writer: Hallie Meyers-Shyer
Stars: Nat Wolff, Reese Witherspoon, Lake Bell

The director here is a first timer. While it is clear to apprehend some of her lively and positive messages about women and love, all characters are too flat for what this is. The movie watches more like a Hallmark channel movie than a full fledged wide release.

Reese Witherspoon delivers the best performance but it’s probably the worst of her career. It isn’t from any failure at acting. It is the script. A couple times, especially at the end, I felt I was watching an episode of Leave it to Beaver. The rest of the cast need not be mentioned, they are lifeless. Again, the script is mostly to blame. I think the three young men are just so excited to be in film with Witherspoon that they are led by their wiggles and this is served as the audience’s exquisite torture.

It boggles my mind why one of the highest paid and esteemed actresses on earth would accept such a role. There are no real characters, there is no plot or conflict and the solution is sort of a Leave it to Beaver one at that. We need great rom coms but not like this. Do not waste your time or money on this film.

1/10

As you look into the history and legacy of this film, you see it’s undeniable influence on motion pictures. It’s very well written and the acting is superb.
Title: Cactus Flower
Number of times I’ve seen it: 1
Genre: Comedy, Romance
MPAA Rating: M
Year: 1969
Director: Gene Saks, known for “The Odd Couple”
Top Billed Cast: Walter Matthau, Ingrid Bergman, Goldie Hawn
Brief Synopsis: A dysfunctional romance gives way to an unexpected love affair for the couple with other people.

Goldie Hawn looks to be about 20 years old. Walter Matthau’s character ought to be slapped for having an affair with her. Of course, I’m joking. The characters weave together in this film like mixing paints, The ending is unexpected, somewhat, my wife saw it coming. If they had more romantic comedies like these, I think there’d be more happy couples in the world. I highly recommend this one 100% just like the critics at Rotten Tomatoes do.

Labor Day (2013)
PG-13 | 1h 51min | Drama, Romance | 31 January 2014 (USA)

Depressed single mom Adele and her son Henry offer a wounded, fearsome man a ride. As police search town for the escaped convict, the mother and son gradually learn his true story as their options become increasingly limited.
Director: Jason Reitman
Writers: Jason Reitman (screenplay), Joyce Maynard (based on the novel by)
Stars: Kate Winslet, Josh Brolin, Gattlin Griffith

Director Jason Reitman is a Canadian. He’s known for Up in the Air, Juno, and Thank You for not Smoking. Labor Day would seem to be the most serious drama he’s done yet, although all the films have serious topics.

I really liked this film because it showed a kidnapping where the criminal actually gave something to the victims. They argue later it was a valuable experience, maybe the most valuable of their lives. It’s a paradigm shift. I don’t know if I would call it a romance however.

The mother is odd with her son. I think he takes a lot of her depression on himself and he’s more or less her caretaker emotionally. When this new dark figure takes them both hostage it seems like a terrible crime about to happen but they seem to learn from him, it is a symbiotic relationship. That’s what makes this story a bit odd but no less enjoyable than any of the director’s best films. I would have liked to have seen the mother and son’s characters and past fleshed out a lot more.

While not a straight ahead romance, it has some romance features. I would recommend it as a compelling drama and somewhat of a romance.

8/10

The Other Half (2016)
1h 43min | Drama, Romance | 10 March 2017 (USA)

A bipolar woman and a grief-stricken man struggle to forge a simple life.
Director: Joey Klein
Writer: Joey Klein
Stars: Tatiana Maslany, Tom Cullen, Henry Czerny

This director is an actor attempting to make the crossover to behind the camera. He does a good job. He has the incredible actor Tatiana Maslany backing him as exec producer and lead actress in the film. While I questioned a couple times why he would want to make this film his directorial debut, I can say he earned my respect and I am curious to see what he tackles next. This appears to be a movie about loving through the weaknesses of your partner. In other words, when you don’t have the package you thought you signed up for and must still stay.

The boyfriend is from Downton Abbey and a lot of other stuff. He does an ok job I’d say, as good as most could do alongside this amazing Maslany force we’ve seen grow in that last 5 years. Orphan Black is just one example of her talents and skills. I eagerly await any project she does.

This is a dark looking film but its message is clear and cutting. How do you love another whose need outweigh what you can give. This couple seems determined to do so. Is it touching or stupid? Her father might say the latter. She has severe Biploar. This means she is given to fixaton and manic episodes. He is grief stricken. Does it matter how much he loves her if he cannot help her? The final scene had me thinking all sorts of thoughts. It’s good but not very developed and like I say, hazy at times in appearance and meaning. For dedicated love story and/or bipolar movie folks, it’s a

9/10

Some Freaks (2016)
1h 37min | Comedy, Drama, Romance | 4 August 2017 (USA)

A charming romance develops between a boy with one eye and an overweight girl, though when she loses her weight after going to college, their relationship is tested in devastating ways they never dreamed would happen.
Director: Ian MacAllister McDonald
Writer: Ian MacAllister McDonald
Stars: Thomas Mann, Marin Ireland, Lily Mae Harrington

This is the director’s first endeavor and I applaud him for what he has done here.

I can’t speak for the “studs” and homecoming queens of the world because I was most certainly a geek and maybe even a nerd by all standards. It’s those types this film appeals to. An overweight, but pretty, girl gets in the good graces of older men by giving them blowjobs. Through time she gets away from that but still has trouble believing anyone could really love her. At the same time, a young man with a glass eye and a very geeky disposition starts falling for her but his relationship skills are certainly lacking as well. What results is a roller coaster of emotions from both of them as they enter into a serious relationship. Maybe that’s too early in life to be trying that? The middle 8 is that she gets hot. Through working out and changing her diet, you almost can’t recognize her. This makes for a whole new set of dysfunction. Do we sometimes love people because they are too ugly to leave? This is one thought woven through.

An interesting side character is the jock/bully who has an eye for the “fat girl.” This was a little unclear in its presentation but I think it shows that even the pretty people have hidden ugly things that keep them from true love.

This is a fun little independent high school movie. It’s also deeper than usual for the genre. Some of the characters are a little hard to interpret and the best friend of the young man is horribly miscast. Maybe he knew someone on the casting committee?

7/10