The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

Some people say The Royal Tenenbaums is where writer/director Wes Anderson peaked. I would be inclined to agree so far, but I still hold out hope he'll make another film as great as this one.

You could say this is a character piece with, as you can see from the poster, a whole bunch of characters. In a way it's sort of a choose-your-own-adventure. Pick the character you relate to most and ride through the movie with them. If you don't like them anymore, there are several more from which to choose and each actor pulls his or her own weight resulting in a superb ensemble.

The movie opens as a book where you're introduced to the family as they were about 15 years ago and then a quirky montage shows you them now (and also serves as opening credits). Gene Hackman is the patriarch, Royal Tenenbaum. He wasn't very supportive of the kids when they were growing up and he's been out of their lives completely for many years. Meanwhile their mother, Etheline (Angelica Huston), indulged them in their talents and they all became known as child prodigies (Hello, children who grew up being told they could be whatever they wanted.). Richie (Luke Wilson) was a tennis player. Margot (Gwyneth Paltrow) was a writer. Chas (Ben Stiller) was a financial whiz. But the past several years have been filled with disappointment and failures for all of them.

Broke and kicked out of the hotel he's been staying in, Royal decides now might be a good time to try to reconnect with his family—by lying to them and telling them he has less than two months to live. The whole family soon finds themselves back in the family home and more quirkiness ensues.

The film exists in a hyper-real world. They live in New York, but without any recognizable New York sites. The family dresses in clothing styled after the time when they were all in their heyday. Director Anderson totally ignores the rule of thirds, oftentimes sticking his character smack dab in the center of the screen. He then lets them hang there a moment in a pose before they move on.

The story he's brought us with writing partner Owen Wilson is an odd one but the dysfunctional family line has elements to which everyone can relate. Characters slide between deadpan comedy and heavy drama. And at the end, there's a trademark Anderson slow-motion shot that brings the family together and makes you feel like everyone is taking their final bow. It's a fitting tribute to the charm of a quirky film. Some movies you watch once and their done, but this one can easily stick with you and make you want to watch it again. (For me, again has meant 49 times - no exaggeration.)

Rating: 5/5
Recommended for: Nearly everyone, but especially those of us who grew up entrenched in extracurriculars and are afraid we really might have peaked too early.

The Reader (2008)

The situation one puts himself or herself in to watch The Reader is an interesting one. You know going in that this is not going to be a lighthearted film. Its story is connected to the Holocaust (although it is not a "Holocaust movie") and that's never a happy thing. On top of that it can be hard to connect to the characters for the first hour or so.

Just as I was considering dismissing the film, I found myself hooked and tied to the two main characters and they didn't let me go until the end.

One day on his way home in 1950s Berlin, Michael Berg (David Kross) falls ill. He is taken care of by a stranger who sees to it that he makes it home ok. Several months later he has recovered and goes to thank her. He finds her beautiful and mysterious and can't help but be drawn to her. Her name is Hanna Schmitz, she works on a tram, and that's mainly all we get to know about her for quite some time.

Even though Hanna is several years older than Michael, they embark on a romantic affair which ends up containing a routine in which she makes him read to her. One day Michael goes to her apartment and finds she's packed up and left. Several years later she's back in his life again. Now he's a law student and he's attending the trial of several female former Nazi prison guards. Hanna happens to be one of them. While Michael is dumbstruck about this revelation he makes another that could have a serious outcome on her sentencing. But the question is whether he will speak up or not.

Kate Winslet won an Oscar for her role as Hanna, a woman who suddenly becomes more human right in front of our eyes. The off-putting disposition Winslet buries into at the beginning (the same that played into my wanting to give up on the movie) is what allows her to really showcase the transition as she opens up a little and fights internal battles that play out on her face. Ralph Fiennes is also in the film as "present-day" Michael demonstrating a closed-off nature that much mirrors the one presented earlier by Winslet.

No spoiling of the ending will take place here, but I will say this: Watch it with someone you care about. You'll need a hug when it's over.

Rating: 4/5
Recommended for: Those looking for a film about human nature.

The Usual Suspects (1994)

The end of this movie is so brilliant that it makes the rest of the film worse for the wear. It also makes it pretty boring to watch more than once, which unfortunately I did in order to review it.

A waterfront explosion leaves many criminals dead. The police find two survivors: a badly burnt, most-wanted Hungarian who keeps repeating the name Keyser Soze and a crippled con-artist named Verbal Klint (Kevin Spacey). As the police question Klint on what happened, he tells the story of five career-criminals, including himself, (the usual suspects) brought in for a lineup after a crime they didn't commit. They end up banding together and eventually find themselves forced into the employment of the dangerous and mysterious Keyser Soze.

Stephan Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio Del Toro, and Kevin Pollack play the other 4 usual suspects, all just distinct enough in their roles. Pete Postlethwaite is plenty sinister as Soze's number two, Mr. Kobayashi. Chazz Palminteri is what you'd expect as the borderline obsessive detective trying to figure out what happened on the boat that exploded. Kevin Spacey is his usual confident self as Klint, our flashback narrator.

That story Klint tells is long, violent, and often a bit confusing. The good news is if the story confuses you, it doesn't matter. I can't tell you why without ruining anything, but it is ok to be confused.

Rating: 2/5
Recommended for: People who like paying attention to a movie for only ten minutes. (I'd recommend the last ten.)

The Valet (2006)

Writer/Director Francis Veber created a sweet and highly amusing film with The Valet even with it's absurdity. Valet Francois Pignon is hired to portray the boyfriend of the highest paid model in the world, Elena, after he's caught in a paparazzi photo of Elena with billionaire Pierre Levasseur. Levasseur is trying to hide his affair with Elena from his wife, a majority stakeholder in all his businesses. Pignon has just been rejected by the woman he's loved his entire life, bookstore owner Emilie, so he's not really in the mood for pretending to have a fabulous supermodel girlfriend.

Part of the reason the absurdity works is because the characters acknowledge it themselves. Another reason is that behind it all, is a genuine portrayal of relationships which comes from a great combination of the script and the actors who all hold their own. Gad Elmaleh is incredibly sympathetic as the valet Pignon and he has great friendship chemistry with Alice Taglioni who plays the very Heidi Klum-esque (i.e. sweet and beautiful) supermodel. In fact, nearly every character is likable in some way. Kristin Scott Thomas, in beautiful fluent French, is fun to watch as the clever and strong wife of Levasseur.

Overall, it's a fun movie to watch with laugh out loud moments and appeal for American audiences despite the spoken dialogue being French.

Rating: 4/5
Recommended for: Anyone 12 and up (even if you hate the French).