Enough Said
James Gandolfini was a magnificent actor that is sorely missed by his countless dedicated fans. Throughout his acting career he won three Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Emmy Awards, two Golden Globes for Best Actor in a Drama Series, and two more SAG Awards as a member of a series' ensemble. Most of us know Gandolfini from the award winning HBO series The Sopranos. He starred as the protagonist, Tony Soprano: a mobster who faces many obstacles when trying to balance his typical home life with his demanding work situation. In addition, Gandolfini starred in many films throughout his career. His outstanding performances in each complex role show how incredibly dynamic Gandolfini was as an actor.Tragically, on  June 19, 2013 James Gandolfini died from a sudden heart attack. He was only 51 years old. One of the last films he took part in was Enough Said.  

Enough Said is a cute, hopeful film that reveals the struggles of single parents. Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) is a quirky, silly, lovable single mom who is sadly awaiting the day she has to send her daughter off to college. When she meets Albert (James Gandolfini) she slowly falls in love with his sense of humor and kind heart, despite his imperfect facade. The couple faces a major road block when Eva's newfound friend, Marianne (Catherine Keener) turns out to be Albert's ex wife. Marianne reveals a myriad of Albert's imperfections without knowing Eva is dating him. Eva begins to doubt her relationship with Albert after she hears everything that could possibly go wrong. Eva is left with a choice to listen to Marianne's indirect warnings or to judge Albert on her own.

Enough Said is funny and entertaining but the true magic lies within James Gandolfini's performance. One can only compare Albert's warm, loving, adorable nature to Tony Sopranos fierce, intimidating, and authoritarian personality. I highly recommend this film to anyone who enjoys James Gandolfini. Apparently, Albert's character  is comparable to who Gandolfini was in real life, which is extremely interesting to watch. This film is lovely because it gives fans a way to say goodbye to one of the most dynamic actors in history, James Gandolfini. 

Fruitvale Station           

Ryan Coogler's Fruitvale Station is a heart wrenching film based on the true story of Oscar Grant. The film takes its audience through Grant's last day of life before he is irrationally murdered by BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) police at the "Fruitvale Station" in Oakland, California.

 Due to the known history of Grant, the audience fully relies on the film's depth to portray a man whose fate is already known. This puts an immense amount of pressure on Coogler to interpret this man's character, and his last few hours, correctly. I would only recommend this film to an individual who truly appreciates symbolism within a film. Coogler beautifully depicts Grant's loving, caring, and protective personality through symbolism. Grant's experience with a stray dog and his young daughter are prime examples of his compassionate heart and devotion to his family. Although Grant is far from perfect, one can only love him as his troubles unravel. Coogler also uses flashbacks to tell Grant's story. This method gives the audience background information that is useful when analyzing Grant's anger issues and complex history.  

 Michael B. Jordan's performance in this film is absolutely spectacular. His raw acting illustrates Oscar Grant's character to the last detail. Without a top notch performance of Grant's character, the film would not have come together so brilliantly. The meticulous work that was put into Fruitvale Station makes the film worthwhile. The fierce acting and complex cinematography successfully gives Oscar Grant the tribute that he deserves.  

Ruby Sparks

The brilliant, quirky, highly original comedy-drama Ruby Sparks is a production that is hard to forget. This film makes a ludicrous act of magic seem absolutely possible.  As a young successful novelist Calvin Weir-Fields (Paul Dano) is struggling to write a meaningful story. His therapist, Dr. Rosenthal (Elliot Gould), gives Calvin a writing assignment to help motivate him. The simple assignment is to write a page about someone who likes his vapid ordinary dog, Scotty. That night Calvin has a dream in which he meets a stunning unique woman who, to his surprise, finds positive qualities in Scotty. Calvin wakes up and is inspired to write about the magical girl. After writing pages and pages about the messy yet lovable Ruby Sparks (Zoe Kazan), Calvin admits he is falling in love with the character he is creating.  Calvin's brother Harry (Chris Messina) and sister-in-law Susie (Toni Trucks) come to visit and find mysterious articles of women's clothing around the house. The next day, Calvin wakes up to find a girl eating in his kitchen. The young girl acts as if she's known Calvin for a very long time. After hearing the girl speak about strangely familiar topics, Calvin realizes that the living person in his house is in fact, his character, Ruby Sparks. Startled, Calvin hides from what seems to be a figment of his imagination. With the help of Harry, Calvin does a series of small tests to prove that Ruby is actually alive. After Ruby interacts with a myriad of other human beings, Calvin realizes that his ultimate dream came true. Although Calvin is finally living in bliss, he cannot ignore the fact that he has full control over Ruby's entire being. Can Calvin ignore the temptation? Ruby's personality, and thoughts are on the line. Calvin is left to face various heart wrenching obstacles while attempting to make sense of an inconceivable miracle.

Ruby Sparks smoothly incorporates magic into a realistic story with ease. This incredible idea pulls the audience in while the script never fails to impress. Although it is a truly fictional story, the unbelievably genuine characters, especially Ruby, compel the audience to believe anything is possible.

The Spectacular Now

James Ponsoldt’s new film, The Spectacular Now, has a charming, relatable, heartwarming story with a fabulous cast. Viewers are guaranteed to leave the theater feeling nostalgic and personally connected with the main character, Sutter Keely (Miles Teller). Sutter's gift and curse is his constant drive to live in the now. When the film begins the audience is introduced to an irresponsible impulsive teenager with no work ethic or true aspirations. Sutter uses his wit and charm to dodge every obstacle clouding his path until his girlfriend, Cassidy, realizes she is incapable of dealing with his lack of ambition. After Cassidy dumps Sutter, he numbs the pain the only way he knows how, with alcohol. Sutter is woken up the next morning on a stranger's lawn by Aimee Finecky (Shailene Woodley), a pure innocent girl who never attends parties, has few friends, and is tremendously obedient. Sutter is instantly interested in Aimee's way, and slowly, but surely, the teenagers fall in love. Conflicts with Aimee's controlling mother and Sutter's deadbeat father cause the couple to face overwhelming hardships. Sutter is ultimately challenged with the fact that living in the now may be detrimental to himself and the people he has come to love.  

The extremely realistic script of  The Spectacular Now sets this production above the typical high school film.  The relationship between Aimee and Sutter is raw, real, and enticing. The dialogue between the two young lovers withholds rich and powerful meaning with the help of wit, sarcasm, and subtle symbolism. Although Sutter is constantly making colossal mistakes, one can only love the positive, high spirited boy because of his beautiful way with words. The script never yields to reveal Sutter's genuine heart and Aimee's loveable personality as secrets unfold and the relationship is tested. Clear images of the past are meticulously painted with ease as the film progresses. Viewers are taken back to their high school years through the mind of a spontaneous naïve boy who finds love and, eventually, himself.

Don Jon Review

At 32 years old, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is a busy man. He has landed himself leading roles in both Looper and Premium Rush, and prominent supporting roles in The Dark Knight Rises and Lincoln. These are just the films he did in 2012 alone. Most of those who know of Gordon-Levitt understand that he is a brilliant actor; however, so little understand the depths of his talents behind the camera. Gordon-Levitt runs his own company, hitRECord, an independent production company that helps independent artists in music, film, TV, and literature find a soapbox in which they can stand on to make their voices heard. After almost a decade of dedicating time to the little guy, Gordon-Levitt finally decided to show off his true talent as a director.

Enter Don Jon: Gordon-Levitt's directorial and screenwriting debut, a film in which Gordon-Levitt plays the title role where he is nothing short of fantastic. Gordon-Levitt plays Jon Martello an über Italian, body building, God-loving, porn crazed lothario who finds himself enjoying the life of a single man. Martello is a complete womanizer until he meets Barbara Sugarman (portrayed by a fantastic Scarlett Johansson) and suddenly finds himself at a crossroads. Jon's mother (an easily loveable Glenne Headly) and father (a hilarious Tony Danza) believe that Barbara might be Jon's future wife. Barbara looks to turn her boyfriend into the man she envisions to be with. This comes with a cost for Jon. In order to meet Barbara's needs he must give up his obsession with pornography.
Jon finds his old life difficult to drop and desperately needs to learn a thing or two about himself. Here's when Esther (a wonderfully acted portrayal by Julianne Moore) comes in. She points Jon in the right direction and adds depth to the story. To go any further would spoil the film.

Don Jon isn't a proverbial senseless Jersey Shore knockoff filled with cheap laughs and a paper thin story. It's instead dressed in comedy, snappy characters, and a risky plot. One may be surprised to find that this film contains a very real story that many can relate to in the most unorthodox of ways. Joseph Gordon-Levitt's debut is nothing short of stellar, showing great promise for his next opus behind the camera as well as his next in front of it. Just as we saw in the trailer and commercials, we can't help but feel good vibrations from Don Jon. 

The Magic of Film

"I think cinema,movies, and magic have always been 

closely associated. The very earliest people who made

 film were magicians." 

-Francis Ford Coppola

I believe that every human being needs an escape from every day life. Over the years I've found solace in watching films. I began to really appreciate the complex process of film making after I took a few television and film production classes. I try to get to the movies at least three times a month to keep up with new Oscar worthy films. I have decided to use this blog to review and analyze some of my favorite movies. I have never formally posted about this subject so I'm excited to explore some of my favorite films in depth.