Warning: Real Life Approaching

As a culture, we have arguably gone a little bit crazy for Hollywood and celebrities. Many of the top magazines sold around the country are US Weekly, People and Star, titles that make their living by capitalizing on this desire for information on the rich and famous and focusing on such things as whom they are currently romancing and how they dress. It's not exactly important information, but much of our society just can't seem to get enough of it. This isn't meant to disparage those of you who DO read these periodicals; this is simply my personal opinion. I mean, I'm a FILM reviewer. While I don't talk about the latest fashions, I still bring attention to celebrities' movies on a regular basis. Speaking of film, the best example of celebrity worship getting out of control might be The Bling Ring, the latest movie by director Sofia Coppola. It tells the true story of a group of young Californians whose desire to be closer to the lifestyles they desired became an obsession that saw them break into the homes of Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Rachel Bilson and more, stealing to their heart's content. Between 2008 and 2009, these kids stole upwards of $3 million in cash and belongings before they were arrested. If nothing else, it's the perfect example for how this kind of behavior can get completely and utterly out of hand.

Emma Watson's going all Bonnie and Clyde on us.

The kids in Coppola's latest motion picture are definitely a little messed up. Marc (Israel Broussard) is a loner who has never been very popular and got kicked out of his last school for too many absences. Rebecca (Katie Chang) is a minor criminal who gets off on breaking and entering and theft. Chloe (Claire Julien) talks "gangsta" and gets a little wild. And Nicki (Emma Watson) and Sam (Taissa Farmiga) are home-schooled best friends who take Adderall regularly and whose education is based entirely on Rhonda Byrne's Laws of Attraction book "The Secret". So getting past the part where none of these kids really had a chance, their descent into theft is both glitzy enough to shine on the big screen and dark enough to make for a decent character study of their various issues. Coppola cast mainly unknowns for her leads, and the real surprise is not how great Emma Watson is (because seriously, she's fricking Emma Watson), but the quality of performances from the rest of the young cast. Though Watson is undoubtedly the movie's biggest star, the film belongs to Broussard and Chang, who are talented young actors given genuine moments to stand out and succeed in a variety of ways. The cast is rounded out by Leslie Mann (as Nicki's mother) and Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale to fill the film's adult quota, but this film definitely belongs to the kids, and they make the most of their opportunities.

We're in a movie taking pictures of ourselves! Wild!

The acting is aided by a director in Coppola who has a flair for cinematics. While the "Girls Gone Wild" indie concept has already been adequately handled by March's Spring Breakers, Coppola is by far a better director than Korine, using music and visual flair to accentuate her specific narrative style, rather than try to hide her movie's inadequacies. It's a talent that only the best - not necessarily most successful, but best - directors possess. In The Bling Ring, Coppola manages to infuse every scene - no matter how inconsequential - with an artistry that instantly makes everything BETTER, like a cure-all that can magically heal all the film's wounds.

I'm sorry... what was I saying?

Unfortunately, that cure-all is, in reality, simply a band-aid. While the acting is excellent and the atmosphere Coppola adds does vastly improve things, there's just not all that much story going on here. There are whole scenes which have little to do with moving the story forward (including a shot from Marc's computer camera of him dancing around), and are just filler, adding absolutely nothing of value. There are a few inspired scenes (Marc and Rebecca robbing Audrina Patridge's home as seen from a distance outside), but most of the "shopping" bits - as they're called - aren't nearly as fun or original as they ought to be. In fact, they feel suspiciously like the worst fashion-centric moments of Sex and the City, when all the ladies can talk about are Gucci and Jimmy Choo's. Interaction between characters is great. Interaction between characters and articles of clothing, not so much.

Direct quote here: "I want to lead a country one day, for all I know."

When there's a story to follow and the actors get to play up the chronic naivete of their generation, The Bling Ring is at its trashy, dumpster-diving best. This is not a movie that condones celebrity worship; in fact, it does its best to show just how bad that behavior has gotten in some parts of our society. But unfortunately there's just not a whole lot of meat on those bones, even for a film that barely clocks in at an hour and a half. Coppola does her absolute best, and I doubt that this could have been better in anybody else's hands. But similarly to Spring Breakers, recommending that somebody see The Bling Ring on the big screen is not a task I would be up to taking. Which is a shame, because there are genuinely strong scenes and evocative moments that absolutely make it worth a rental option. Watson is a star who is still rising, but even her excellent performance can't convince me to convince you that it's worth your time right now.

Movie Monday: ParaNorman

Looking for the best animated film of the year? Look no further than ParNorman, the latest stop-motion picture by Laika, the company behind Coraline. In fact, this is the #4 movie for 2012, and for good reason.

In the small Massachusetts town of Blithe Hollow, Norman Babcock is a withdrawn, shy boy who just happens to be able to talk to the spirits of the dead. It has caused friction with his parents, his sister, and the kids at school, many of whom bully him over his "weirdness". But one person does not think Norman is strange. He gives Norman the task of protecting the town from a witch's curse, one that threatens to raise the dead unless countered by Norman's ability. For the first time in his life, he will have the chance to prove his detractors wrong and become the hero he's destined to be.

ParaNorman is directed by Sam Fell and Chris Butler, and features the voices of Kodi Smit-McPhee, Tucker Albrizzi, Anna Kendrick, Casey Affleck, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Leslie Mann, Jeff Garlin, Elaine Stritch, Bernard Hill, and John Goodman.

Click here for the complete review on Open Letters Monthly.

I Hate You Jim Carrey: And Other Reasons I Didn't Want to See this Movie

It's true. It's all true.

Okay, maybe HATE is too strong a word. More accurately you might say that I never GOT why people so adamantly loved Jim Carrey, this overly-goofy comedian whose career has surprisingly not been derailed by several missteps over the course of his now thirty years of acting. What I hated the worst about seeing him in anything was that he COULD be funny, and then go completely over the top in a way that I thought ruined the joke. Fortunately for him, many people disagree, and while he's far from the box office draw he was back in the nineties, he's still one of the hardest working comedians in Hollywood, and while I may not be his biggest fan, I have to at least respect what he's done and the awards he's been recognized with. But that doesn't mean I want to go out of my way to see one of his films, either.

Who knew Rodrigo Santoro had a side job as "The Situation"?

So you can imagine my surprise when, this past Wednesday, I was checking out film times online and was disturbed to find that there was not ONE film available that I had not either seen or had more than a tiny interest in. Blue Valentine was at the top of my list, but hadn't come to town yet. Country Strong wasn't coming out until the weekend. And what the heck is Fei Cheng Wu Rao II, anyway? So it was with some trepidation that I decided to see what my friend Dan (he of the Southland Tales recommendation) had been calling his favorite film of 2010, I Love You Phillip Morris. Starring Jim Carrey.

As The Wire teaches us, there are only two days in prison: The day you go in, and the day you come out

Carrey plays real-life conman Steven Jay Russell, notorious for his uncanny ability to escape prisons. Over the course of the film, Steven becomes a conman to fund his excessive lifestyle, gets sent to prison for the whole conman "thing", enters a homosexual relationship with the Ewan McGregor as the titular Phillip Morris, then tries to build a relationship with Morris outside of prison walls, only to fall back on old habits. In all this Steven is portrayed as both a shrewd and conniving con artist and prison escapist and as a man who would do anything for the people in his life who he cares for.

"Ah wish ah knew how ta quit yoo"

What's surprising about this film is that while it could have easily traipsed down that road into silliness for the sake of silliness, I Love You Phillip Morris displays a good amount of heart, even if that heart is seemingly displayed most often by the film's criminal lead. In fact, many of the crimes Stephen commits over the course of the film are supposedly blamed on his need to fund luxurious lifestyles for he and his lovers, especially Morris. Sure, there's plenty of crude gay sex jokes - enough to perhaps make a whole second film - but thankfully they don't make the whole movie. While a few scenes go a bit to far in an attempt to be serious and tear-jerking, the film's excellent humor manages to remain valid throughout the story's arc and manages to keep even the more reserved viewers entertained. Also, this film might be the first film in recent memory that actually effectively uses voice over dialogue to enhance the story. Usually, when a film gets a voice-over, its because the story is so weak that you need guidance to move the film forward. Here, it's more of a friendly muse that takes the journey with you.

Flowers? How gauche!

The acting was actually quite good, despite this being a Carrey vehicle. Okay, to be honest, Jim Carrey wasn't at all bad here. His Stephen Russell is immensely likable, somewhat inspiring and laughably goofy, a mix that would usually result in confusion and shrugged shoulders, but actually works out fairly well here. As I mentioned before, Carrey was provided excellent dialogue and jokes, but only he had the timing to make it all consistently humorous and entertaining. That I could even walk away from the theater uncertain how to feel about a multiple-convicted felon speaks volumes to his performance. While I thought he still exhibited a bit of over-the-topness that detracted slightly from the film's delivery, it wasn't enough to say I didn't like him here. But I actually thought he was overshadowed by a very good McGregor, who plays the effeminate and light-hearted Phillip Morris. Owning the role, the worst thing I can say about McGregor is that despite having his name in the title, he was far too small a presence in the actual film, so dominated by Carrey is the plot. Former Lost refugee Rodrigo Santoro does a decent job as Jimmy, a former flame of Stephen's. He's not given much, but occasionally is given a chance to shine. Better off is Leslie Mann as Stephen's former wife an the mother of his child. She's really only given much to do in the beginning, but she remains a presence throughout the film and I really liked what they did with the character, even if it might not have been very realistic overall.

Fantasizing about a human centipede...

The film does suffer a few flaws. Some things are a bit unrealistic, but this is not surprising as in most "based on true story" films there are often exaggerations made to make the story more entertaining. The film seems to want to be serious at odd times, and some of the more serious scenes feel out of place in such a comedic film. And one of the film's final lines, stating Stephen Jay Russell was an embarrassment to the state of Texas "and Governor George Bush" seems like an obvious ploy to make him more likable in the eyes of the more liberal viewers who are most likely to be watching this movie. Finally, I thought the gay themes were a bit cliche, with stereotypical performances in the gay roles not deviating from what one might expect from them (note that I don't say they are inaccurate, simply stereotypical).

Yes, it's Carrey and McGregor... for 93 minutes

In the end, it doesn't matter what I think about I Love You Phillip Morris, or for that matter what anyone else thinks. The film had trouble finding distributors in the US for more than a year and has struggled mightily in limited release capacity where it has shown. A forthcoming plan to expand the number of theaters showing the film seems like a risk at best and foolhardy at worst. But it does have one big thing going for it: It's already turned a profit playing overseas. Releasing in Europe, Japan and Taiwan early in 2010, the film has already grossed $18 million, much more than it's purported $13 million budget. So you see? No matter whether I like it or not, anything they do now is simply money in the bank. That said, I did thoroughly enjoy this film, even if I thought it was nowhere near the top of my 2010 movies. If you don't feel comfortable with a title that so flagrantly lets its pride flag stand at attention, you won't like this film. Period. But everyone else should get a chuckle at this film's humor and charming personality, as it may go down as one of 2010's most underrated titles.