Blue Like Jazz

Posted on April 19, 2012 at 6:05 pm

B+

Lowest Recommended Age:	Mature High Schooler
MPAA Rating:	Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, sexuality, drug and alcohol content, and some language
Profanity:	Some strong language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking and drugs
Violence/ Scariness:	References to tragic world situations, family stress
Diversity Issues:	A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters:	April 20, 2012
Date Released to DVD:	August 6, 2012
Amazon.com ASIN:	0785263705

Donald Miller’s best-selling collection of essays, Blue Like Jazz: Nonreligious Thoughts on Christian Spirituality has become a crowd-financed and lightly fictionalized film about a Texas teenager from a sheltered Baptist community who goes to the famously free-thinking Reed College in Portland, Oregon.

Marshall Allman of “True Blood” plays Miller, whose Alice in Wonderland-style immersion in a world where everything is questioned and debated is disturbing the way jazz music is disturbing — it never resolves. In Texas, the answers were always laid out in nice straight lines. Everything resolves. Miller’s estranged father, an intellectual who listens to jazz and lives in a trailer, tells him it is time to improvise, to challenge his ideas. His father has arranged for him to be admitted to Reed. When Miller begins to suspect for the first time that not everyone practices what they preach, even at church, he decides to give it a try.

“Forget everything you think you know,” he is told when he arrives. “Sexual identity is social construct,” explains a girl who is using the urinal next to him in the men’s room. One student is handing out free bottles of water and another is handing out literature explaining why bottled water is a scourge and a fraud. Students get credit for civil disobedience. Even his most mundane beliefs are challenged: no one in Oregon carries an umbrella when it rains. Why separate yourself from the elements?

The script by Miller, director Steve Taylor, and co-producer Ben Pearson, smooths out the story (the real Miller did not arrive at Reed until he was 30 and he audited some classes but did not enroll). They wisely avoid the easy and obvious “fish out of water” confrontations. Refreshingly, Miller and his classmate heretics are from the beginning almost always very tolerant of each other’s ways of approaching the world. Indeed, while Miller is warned that the other students may not accept his faith, the most intolerant behavior comes from Miller when he feels betrayed in a very personal way by his church (the film’s only disappointing departure from the real story for the sake of narrative tidiness).

This is a very strong movie in its own terms, a thoughtful, smart, sensitive coming-of-age story. Reedies will enjoy familiar sights from Powell’s bookstore (the site of a debate about the existence of God) to the scroungers’ table in the cafeteria. Most important is that just as Miller’s book explores an expansive, golden-rule-based version of Christianity, the film itself takes sincere, faith-based story-telling out of the narrow confines of what is currently classified as “Christian entertainment.” The real divide is not between believers and non-believers but between those who believe that questioning and tolerance bring them closer to God and those who prefer constant reinforcement of what they think they already know. The vocabulary of faith should not be the exclusive property of one small subset of believers, and it is heartening to watch a movie that makes that point with such grace.

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Titanic 3D

Posted on April 3, 2012 at 6:05 pm

Lowest Recommended Age:	Middle School
MPAA Rating:	Rated PG-13 for disaster-related peril and violence, nudity, sensuality, and brief language
Profanity:	Some strong language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking, drunkenness, smoking
Violence/ Scariness:	Scenes of historic disaster with many deaths, chase with gun, scuffles
Diversity Issues:	A theme of the movie
Date Released to Theaters:	April 4, 2012
Amazon.com ASIN:	B000ANVQ0K

Classic Greek tragedies explored the theme of hubris as human characters dared to take on the attributes of the gods only to find their hopes crushed. This is a real-life story of hubris, as the ship declared to be “unsinkable” (and therefore not equipped with lifeboats for the majority of the passengers) sank on its maiden voyage from England to the United States. In recognition of the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, the Oscar-winning blockbuster film is being re-released in 3D.

In this blockbuster movie, winner of ten Oscars including Best Picture and Best Director and on its way to becoming the highest-grossing movie of all time, the disaster serves as the backdrop to a tragic love story between Rose (Kate Winslet), an upper class (though impoverished) girl and Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio), a lower class (though artistic) boy who won the ticket in a poker game.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzgtthLqIJE

The movie raises important questions about choices faced by the characters, as we see a wide range of behavior from the most honorable to the most despicable. The captain (whose decision to try to break a speed record contributed to the disaster) and the ship’s designer (whose plan for additional lifeboats was abandoned because it made the decks look too cluttered) go down with the ship, but the owner and Rose’s greedy and snobbish fiance survive. Molly Brown (dubbed “Unsinkable” for her bravery that night) tries to persuade the other passengers in the lifeboats to go back for the rest. But they refuse, knowing that there is no way to rescue them without losing their own lives. They wait to be picked up by another ship, listening to the shrieks of the others until they all gone.

Many parents have asked me about the appeal of this movie to young teens, especially teen-age girls. The answer is that in addition to the appeal of its young stars, director James Cameron has written an almost perfect adolescent fantasy for girls. Rose is an ideal heroine, rebelling against her mother’s snobbishness and insistence that she marry for money. And Jack is an ideal romantic hero — sensitive, brave, honorable, completely devoted, and (very important for young girls) not aggressive (she makes the decision to pursue the relationship, and he is struck all but dumb when she insists on posing nude). If he is not quite androgynous, he is not exactly bursting with testosterone either, and, ultimately, he is not around. As with so many other fantasies of the perfect romance, from Heathcliff and Cathy in “Wuthering Heights” to Rick and Ilse in “Casablanca” the characters have all the pleasures of the romantic dream with no risk of having to actually build a life with anyone. It is interesting that the glimpses we get of Rose’s life after the Titanic show her alone, though we meet her granddaughter and hear her refer to her husband. Parents can have some very good discussions with teens about this movie by listening carefully and respectfully when they explain why it is important to them, as this is a crucial stage in their development.

Parents should know that this film includes nudity, a non-explicit sexual situation, a chase with a gun, and the depiction of a real-life tragedy that includes hundreds of deaths.

Family discussion: What is the most important thing Rose learns from Jack? What do we learn about her life after Titanic? Do you agree with her decision about the necklace?

If you like this, try: An earlier version of the story, “A Night to Remember” and documentaries like Titanic: The 100th Anniversary Collection and National Geographic – Secrets of the Titanic

Being Flynn

Posted on March 8, 2012 at 6:05 pm

Lowest Recommended Age:	Mature High Schooler
MPAA Rating:	Rated R for adult situations, language, nudity, and sex
Profanity:	Constant very strong and explicit language
Alcohol/ Drugs:	Drinking, smoking, drugs, substance abuse
Diversity Issues:	A theme of the movie, character makes bigoted remarks
Date Released to Theaters:	March 9, 2012
Amazon.com ASIN:	B00772HR6O

Nick Flynn was working at a Boston homeless shelter when his father, Jonathan Flynn, came in looking for a place to stay. Nick was raised by his mother and had little contact with his father except for some letters explaining that he would soon be recognized as one of the three greatest writers in American history. Nick Flynn’s memoir, Another Bullshit Night in Suck City, has been adapted for the screen by director Paul Weitz, whose films often explore the relationships between fathers and sons (“About a Boy,” “In Good Company,” “American Pie”).

Paul Dano plays Nick, a young man who has some good instincts and some talent. He is worse than directionless — he is stuck. His mother (Julianne Moore) has died and he has no place to go. He moves into a strip club-turned apartment that is barely more than a squat, selected over the other candidates because he has no family who might come in for an extended stay. He takes the job at the homeless shelter because it is the first opportunity he hears of. He is not unsympathetic but he is distant and untrained. When a resident needs a new pair of pants Nick turns to one of the more experienced aides to ask what size. The aide says simply, “Ask him.” Nick begins to see — as we do — the artificiality of the denial-based distance we maintain from people we think might ask more from us than we can give or might make us think about how fragile our support system can be. When his father (Robert De Niro) shows up in the line of people needing a bed, Nick has so many conflicting feelings he has to go numb — on his own and with some chemical assistance. He wants to love his father and he wants his father to love him. He wants to care for him but is afraid of not being able to — we learn more about why later in the story. He is not prepared to acknowledge how much he wants to be like his father (in following his dream of being a writer) and does not want to be like him (unable to finish his story). We hear their competing versions of the story but we know, as Nick does, that both are coming from him.

De Niro has one of his best roles as a man wavering between fierce pride and grandiosity. Jonathan is a man of large gestures and unspeakably selfish behavior. De Niro keeps him human without compromising by trying to make him more sympathetic. Ultimately, it is Jonathan’s lack of empathy that allows him to finally if briefly provide fatherly support and guidance in telling Nick an important truth that frees him from the past and provides direction for the future.

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Sneak Preview for “Titanic 3D”

Posted on February 27, 2012 at 3:13 pm

The Best Picture Oscar winner and box office record-breaker is back to remind us that our hearts will go on. Moviegoers across the U.S. and Canada will be among the first audiences anywhere to experience Titanic in 3D at the exclusive “sneak preview” fan screening events, set for Monday, April 2nd in Canada and Tuesday, April 3rd in the U.S. Presented exclusively in RealD®, these one-night only special advance screenings will take place at 6:30pm at select 3D movie theaters across North America. It opens in theaters April 4 for a special engagement.

Each TITANIC in 3D Sneak Preview Pack* includes:

One ticket to the movie sneak preview
A collectors edition pair of TITANIC RealD® 3D glasses
A limited-edition TITANIC movie art lithograph

*While supplies last

Tickets for these April “sneak preview” events are on sale now both on-line, and at participating theatres. For event locations around the country, to purchase tickets, or to learn more about this exclusive event, please go to Titanic Fan Sneak Preview.

James Cameron, who directed the film has digitally re-mastered it using the latest technology of StereoD. The re-release of TITANIC also coincides with the 100th anniversary of the Titanic setting sail on April 10, 1912. Written, directed and produced by James Cameron, TITANIC is the second highest grossing movie of all time, following Cameron’s “Avatar.” It is one of only three films to have received a record 11 Academy Awards® including Best Picture and Best Director; and launched the careers of stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.

Act of Valor

Posted on February 23, 2012 at 6:07 pm

The Navy SEALS approached the Bandito Brothers film-makers about telling their story, years before they became headline heroes by finding and killing Osama Bin Laden. After spending time with the SEALS and learning about their extraordinary missions and their extraordinary devotion to their families, their country, and each other, it became clear that even the biggest stars in Hollywood could never do them justice. And so they made “Act of Valor,” a thrilling action/adventure film starring active duty U.S. Navy SEALS re-enacting some of their most dangerous missions, with live ammunition. Every person in uniform you see in the film is currently serving in the U.S. military. More than once, shooting had to shut down so that the SEALS could get back to work.

The story is pure fiction but the situations are real and the filming includes footage of training missions with live ammunition. According to the story, a CIA agent has been kidnapped and is being tortured. Terrorists are trying to enter the United States to detonate suicide bombings that will murder thousands of civilians. The SEALS get little notice and less background briefing and they have to save the day, using a combination of the most cutting edge technology in weapons and communication and the oldest and most basic forms of technology (hand-to-hand combat) and communication (hand signals and just knowing each other and the mission objectives). Most of all, they rely on training, integrity, and trust. What they don’t rely on is anything going as originally planned. In one exciting chase, the bad guys are closing in and shooting at them with automatic weapons and one of the SEALs has been critically injured. What is even more fascinating than the pulse-pounding action is the way the Seals keep adapting their escape plan and updating their team with remarkable economy and precision. “This will be a hot extract,” they say crisply into the walkie-talkies as they return fire. “Moving to tertiary extract,” they continue. All may be chaos around them, but you get the feeling that they could keep going with another 20 thought-through options for pick-up if the first 19 can not work. “Prepare for a bigger fight than you were expecting,” they are advised in one operation, but the SEALs are always ready. One of them quotes the moving words of the Native American leader Tecumseh that concludes, “When your time comes to die, be not like those whose hearts are filled with fear of death, so that when their time comes they weep and pray for a little more time to live their lives over again in a different way. Sing your death song, and die like a hero going home.”

The guys (their names are not used for security reasons) are not actors, but that just adds to to sense that we are watching a documentary, albeit a documentary that sometimes plays like a first-person shooter game. When we see the SEALs with their families and with each other, it is clear that there is not an actor in the world who could convey the humility and honor that is fundamental to their natures.

The storyline is thin and generic but there is plenty of drama in the operation of the missions, each like a movie of its own and well staged to make us feel at the center of the action. Country greats like Trace Adkins, Wynonna Judd, Sugarland, and Lady Antebellum provide a stirring soundtrack. We see operations on land, sea, and in the air. There are fights and shoot-outs but one of the most mesmerizing scenes is all talk as the master interrogator shows the master criminal just enough respect to keep him cooperating, making clear how much power he has over the other man’s life to make that cooperation meaningful. “I’d rather bring a gun to a knife fight than be interrogated by him,” one of the Seals says proudly. The support of their families and, at least in one case, a family history of sacrifice creates a clarity of priorities that creates a context for excellence. In a world where ambiguity and partisanship make it hard to find heroes, the biggest thrills in this film come not from the shoot-outs but from seeing real-life commitment, courage, and what valor truly means.

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