Jodie Foster

This past weekend I was reminded of how much I have always admired Jodie Foster. It's not like I forgot about her or anything it's just that she's not in too much these days. I re-watched The Silence of the Lambs on the weekend as I do about once every year and let me tell you, it gets better every time, if that's even possible. As a young girl I wanted to be Clarice Starling. Fuck, I still do! Many years ago I even took criminology/psychology in college hoping to head in the right direction.

My love for Jodie Foster bloomed when I was quite small. You see, I've always loved movies and when I was young and delusional I had grand fantasies that one day I might just be an actress in the movies myself. Although I was too young to be completely insecure, I became aware that I didn't necessarily look like all the other kids in movies and as I got older I realized that I didn't necessarily look like all the teenagers in movies either. It felt like a lose/lose situation.

Nope, there I was in elementary school, gangly and awkward. My ears stuck out and I had crooked teeth. My face was covered in freckles. I was weird and shy. And then I saw Freaky Friday. Lo and behold there was a girl who was kind of funny looking too or maybe she was just tom-boyish and she talked kinda strange. I wished I had a best friend like that, someone that could understand how I felt, and even better, I thought that if she was in the movies then maybe one day I could be too!



Of course, when I saw Freaky Friday and Jodie Foster for the first time, I was a bit behind. She was quite a bit more grown up at that point, but what did I know?



Let's jump ahead a few years to the 1992 Academy Awards. Yes, even back then I simply had to watch the Oscars every year. I remember it vividly. I recall Billy Crystal being wheeled out with the Hannibal Lector mask on but most of all I remember how happy I was to see Jodie Foster in her white suit, giving her acceptance speech for Best Actress. It was a moment I will always remember. I thought she was so pretty and if she turned out pretty maybe there was hope for me. Even though I thought she was pretty I still noticed that she didn't look like all the other pretty ladies there. But again I thought, if she was up there maybe one day I could be too!



Well scratch that. I was always too shy to try and act even though in my heart I felt like it was something I could excel at. In high school when there would be auditions for various plays (my high school was kind of known for theatre) I would always work up the nerve to go into the auditorium and sign up to audition. Then I'd sit there waiting my turn but inevitably I'd always get too nervous and sneak out the back doors. It was quite devastating to me really. I just couldn't bring myself to go up there in front of all those people. Come Grade 12 I wouldn't even walk across the stage due to my overwhelming stage fright.

This never stopped me from playing around by myself in my room though. Then as in now, I can often be found alone in my room doing monologues in the mirror, prancing about while reciting lines in different accents. Pretending I'm people I'm not. That small, awkward girl with a face of freckles and crooked teeth just grew into a bigger version of the same.

Maybe my dreams didn't come true but I still love the movies and I still love Jodie Foster and every time I see her in something I feel that spark of inspiration and I feel good.




Ok, so why did I think she was kind of funny and plain looking? She's is a total babe!

-Amanda

(500) Days of Summer

This will be brief as I know most people have not seen this film yet and I don't want to spoil it for you:

I loved this movie.

Romantic comedies get a bad rap. That's because there are so many pumped out every year and most of them are garbage. Now, anyone that knows me, knows that I like going to see bad romantic comedies as well. What can I say? I love love! But don't mistake the fact that just because I go see them all, that I might actually think they are good.

No, there are indeed few romantic comedies that have that perfect combination of good writing, good directing and good performances from the actors. It's hard to reach the perfection that is such films as Annie Hall or When Harry Met Sally (and let's not forget Sleepless in Seattle!). I don't expect that (not everyone can be an Allen or Ephron!) but it certainly is refreshing when one stumbles upon a film about romance that is a step above complete fluff.

(500) Days of Summer is the first feature film from director Marc Webb. It was written by Scott Neustadter and Michael Weber and to them I say bravo, job well done!

It follows Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Tom and Zooey Deschanel as Summer and their 500 days together from beginning to middle and then the end. Yes, I tire of seeing Deschanel play the "kooky" girl. To me, she seems to play variations of the same character, over and over again but I don't dislike her. And JGL is the hottest thing I've seen in awhile. Pardon me while I go wring out the ol' undies (ahem, sorry)! They were both great in this, especially him, and their chemistry helped to make this movie as wonderful as it was.



Sure, this isn't the greatest film ever made but it was nice to see an original spin on this familiar tale that we all know so well, in the movies and in real life. I thought the writers did an excellent job of capturing the fun, the awkward, and the messy moments that make up all relationships as they blossom and then fall apart. It was all around a clever and inventive film.

What I took away from it was that when suffering a broken heart, we all choose to look back and focus only on the good times when if we could just step back and get out of our heads, we might see the relationship for what it was - not very good. We'd see that stuff that meant we weren't meant to be. I know I've been there and I would imagine that you have been too. It's just too bad that for most people it takes months, if not years in some cases, to get to that point.

A lovely film. Please go see it.

-Amanda

2009
RT - 89%
IMDB - 8.3/10

Manhattan Melodrama

Last night I was lucky enough to catch Manhattan Melodrama on the big screen. Not only that but it was paired with The Public Enemy! It's a rare occasion that movies from the early 30's play in Vancouver so this was something that I couldn't possibly pass on, for in my opinion, the 30's were one of the best decades for film (not too mention the movie stars).

Manhattan Melodrama starts in 1904 with the infamous sinking of the steamship "General Slocum" in the East River of New York. On board are two young best friends, Blackie Gallagher (a wee Mickey Rooney) and Jim Wade. Their families perish in the fire/sinking but they are rescued by a priest and promptly taken in by a man who has lost his own son in the disaster.



The two boys remain the best of friends, now close like brothers, as they grow up to be very different men.

Blackie, now a grown man (Clark Gable) has become a racketeer, owning and running his own successful casino. The cops are on his payroll and turn a blind eye to the goings on inside. Meanwhile, Jim (William Powell) has become the District Attorney. Although they are so very different and do not see each other as much as they once did, their love for one another still runs very deep.

Blackie's main gal, Eleanor (Myrna Loy) is becoming increasingly fed up with Blackie's lifestyle and longs for a more normal life with the man she loves. After a night in which Blackie arranged for Jim to entertain Eleanor, she decides enough is enough and she leaves Blackie. A few months later she meets up with Jim and a romance blooms followed quickly by a marriage that Blackie supports.



Jim runs for governor during this time and is warned that his association with Blackie and what seems to have been preferential treatment in regards to a murder, may hinder his chances in the race.

Another murder takes place and all signs point to Blackie as the culprit. Jim, having to do his job, must prosecute his best friend in what leads to a guilty verdict and the sentence of death.

I really enjoyed this. Starting off with a young Mickey Rooney made it a sure bet that I would love this film. There's always something about him that fills me up with such happiness. Even at such a young age he just had that spark and the acting chops to go with it.

I thought all of the leads were well cast. They were a joy to watch on screen together. I really felt the connection and devotion between Blackie and Jim, especially in the emotional ending scenes. It felt very real to me.



And I loved Loy and Powell together. It makes sense that over the course of their career they were in 14 films together, including The Thin Man series and The Great Ziegfeld!

Actually, an interesting tidbit is that William Powell was married to Carole Lombard from 1931-33 and then in 1936, Lombard met Clark Gable. They were married in 1939 until her death in 1942. Just interesting to me? Ok, that's fine.

Clark Gable really is charming, isn't he? Although he's never been an absolute favourite of mine, I couldn't ignore how good he was in this. While he used to make all the ladies swoon, I myself have a hard time getting past that little moustache. I'm drawn to the William Powell's, Jimmy Stewart's and Mickey Rooney's of the world.

All in all a very pleasing tearjerker (if you're a pansy like me). Check it out.

-Amanda

1934, B&W
Rotten Tomatoes: N/A
IMDB: 6.9/10