Eat Pray Love (2010)

I love a good road or travel film so when I saw the trailer for this film I was ecstatic. I'm a spiritual person so I was really looking for a message or something to apply to my own life from Liz's adventures. Little did I know that I was going to get much more than I bargained for.

"Eat Pray Love" is a film directed by Ryan Murphy who is quickly becoming a household name mostly being known as the creator of the hit TV series "Glee". The film stars Julia Roberts, Billy Crudup, James Franco, Javier Bardem, Viola Davis, Richard Jenkins, and Christine Hakim. The film is about a woman named Liz Gilbert who is unhappy with the calculated choices she has made in here life so she leaves everything and everyone behind to travel the world in search of herself. In the film she visits Italy, India, and Bali experience three different kinds of pleasure. Eating, Praying, and loving. Not only do I love this film, I connected to it on a deep personal level. I completely identified with Liz and almost everything that she said regarding her life. It's not easy for us to give up on everything and not have money and see the world. We went to have the comfort of knowing that we have somewhere safe to lay our head every night and it takes a sacrifice to do what Liz did. She had a book advance to travel with but everyday people don't have that luxury. I often think about taking the road less traveled and I felt like my hunger was temporarily quenched during this film because I was so emotionally invested. Aside from the bias, I really feel that the critics were harsh in their reviews. Honestly, I don't give a damn what critics say about film anymore because I think they've seen so many movies that they've been desensitized and they often glaze over most films unless it's a film they actually want to see. I don't give a fuck. I never pay attention to critics or listen to them. Hell, if I did that I probably would only see one or two films a year.

Julia Roberts is a marvel as always but here you get to see her differently. The way she portrays Liz is that of someone who knows what they want but doesn't know what they want. As she goes to each country she is thrown into the unknown and she handles it the best way that she knows how. All the supporting performers are good as well but one that stood out to me was Javier Bardem's character Felipe. Here is a man who is utterly charming and seems to live in a happy existence but he doesn't completely. He's afraid to love again after losing his wife and he can't let himself go from that. It's a very subtle and heartbreaking performance. It's brilliant. Sure you can see this film as a narcissistic, unrealistic, slow, and so much beautiful eye candy in it that the plot suffers but if you just let yourself see the movie for what it is then you will learn something from it. In a larger sense this film isn't about Liz at all, it's about our lives and how we choose to live them and what paths we choose to take. We can be bound to another or to no one at all and that to me is worth the price of admission. It's a beautiful film and should be seen if not for Julia Roberts. It's like watching three different films really because each segment has a different story to tell even though we're dealing with the same woman.

I don't even have to tell you that the cinematography is impeccable. If you don't like the movie, you can at least admire what you see. Colors are radiant and there's almost an angelic glow to most of the scenes to almost signify some sort of perpetual spiritual awakening throughout the film. There is a beautiful BEAUTIFUL shot that they actually show in the trailer of Javier Bardem grabbing hold of Julia's hands and the sun shines through their hands. I often wonder how filmmakers get shots like that. Overall the cinematography is breathtaking.

There is a very interesting choice of music used in this film and what you get essentially is an eclectic selection. It's definitely a soundtrack that you would have playing in the background at some chill party or a romantic evening with that special someone. However, it fit the film in all it's different locales.

Julia Roberts radiates in this and there were a few times a mist appeared in my eyes. It's a story for those who feel trapped in their lives and want to make a change. Those who are practical need not apply. If you've ever thought of experience what reckless abandon feels like, this movie will give you a taste of living in the moment and not planning your whole life out like a list of to-dos until you're dead. Highly recommended for those who want more out of life.

The Social Network (2010)

It's been a long while since I posted here, mostly because I got distracted with things that I shouldn't have been distracted by...trivial nonsense. Now I'm back and I promise to be more attentive to my blog. If, for no better reason, to sharpen my writing skills. Also, I haven't been going to the movies that much until recently so I have some films to tell you about.

It was only a matter of time before the story of how Facebook came to be would surface now that it is a global entity. When I heard that they were making a movie about it I was not impressed. I thought, why would anyone want to see a movie about that? Then I heard that Justin Timberlake was going to be in it and I wasn't impressed with that either. Not that I have anything against Justin Timberlake. I was more disappointed because I wanted him to choose better roles. Then there was the attachment of one of my favorite directors, David Fincher. That's when I thought, this might be something.

"The Social Network" is a film directed by David Fincher and stars Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Brenda Song, Rooney Mara, Armie Hammer, and Max Minghella. The film is about the birth of Facebook and how it came to be what it is today. This film has so much going for it that I don't know where to begin to gush. I left this film surprised, captivated, and stimulated. This film not only told a compelling story but also was a very modern story about social interaction. It was a great commentary on how easy it is to get sucked into the glory of it all and the consequences of one's actions. It's a cautionary tale yet, at the same time, it's a story of loyalty and friendship and college life. It's a great film and has the potential to be the film of the year as so many other critics have already said. The film is also brimming with talent that we're sure to hear more of after this film. You're literally watching the birth of careers on screen and it's a joy to watch.

Jesse Eisenberg as Mark Zuckerberg is definitely a performance for the ages. In the past I've always seen Jesse as a young Woody Allen type who would always play the same roles but I like him. This film shatters that thought completely. He really shows that he's much more than that in this film. Playing Mark with such tenacity and such verve. Every emotion that Mark feels, you see it written all over Jesse's face. You really get a sense of who Mark Zuckerberg is and who he thinks he should be. He's not really seen in a good way in this film throughout most of it but much like most of us he was just a kid who wanted to fit in any way he could and he didn't care how he got that acceptance. It's acting at it's finest. Andrew Garfield, who we will all know soon worldwide because he's been cast as the new Spider-man in the reboot of the franchise, is also a revelation. He captures the character of Eduardo with a sensibility that I haven't seen in an actor in a while. A subtle and sad performance that really makes you feel for what his character faces in this film. Andrew has an amazing career ahead of him and here you get to see his beginning. Another great performance, and surprise, came from Justin Timberlake. I was wondering when he would pop his cherry acting wise and he has done it here. No doubt David Fincher is responsible for his performance but nevertheless Justin portrayed the flawed creator of Napster creator Sean Parker. We really don't know Sean's history or how he came to be but Timberlake portrays him so flawlessly that in every scene he's in, you learn a lot about Sean without having to know his history through exposition. Harvard is the honorary character here and it is portrayed in a way I think that we all thought of it to be. It's elitist environment is a complete with exclusive "clubs" and secrets that would potentially carry on into their adult lives thus creating men and women who deceive.

The cinematography, like most of Fincher's films, has a muted palette. Colors are drab and has a neutral look to it which total encapsulates the tone of the film and the story. There's a lot of deep blacks and dim dorm rooms to sort of give you the authentic feel of being on a college campus. Even during the day scenes there isn't much light which gives the feel of a foreshadowing doom throughout the first half of the film. Shots of the Harvard campus look great and picturesque but at the same time looks like a deserted island for those of privilege and the lucky. All in all the perfect accompaniment to this story.

The score and music to this film fit it like a glove mostly due to the fact that Nine Inch Nails' frontman Trent Reznor helped compose it. Luckily the theater I went to see this film in was bombastic and the sound literally took you into the film. This was a very modern score to go with a very modern film and anything else would've taken away from the film. It was used in a way to punctuate certain scenes and it certainly did that. The writing was stellar and Aaron Sorkin did a masterful job. The dialogue was sharp and precise and very intriguing. I can't get over how well this was written. It makes me jealous as a fellow screenwriter. If this doesn't, at least, get a screenplay Oscar nod then that would be VERY unjust.

This was a very refreshing movie going experience and I would have to strongly recommend you see this film. If not for the film itself then at least for the performances because they deserve attention. Plus it's very interesting to see how Facebook became. This film has got everything going for it and it may very well be the movie of the year.