Adding to the winter holiday festivities was a flurry of movies, from Oscar nominees to family-friendly films, looking to make a little extra money. I had a chance to watch a few during my break, and for the most part I liked what I saw.
person who fights
Directed by David Russell and starring Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale and Amy Adams, “The Fighter'' tells the classic story of an underdog athlete who has huge obstacles to overcome. Although it's a true story, what's special about The Fighter isn't the plot. Where it really shines is in the performance.
Mark Wahlberg plays Mickey Ward, the down-to-earth protagonist who struggles to separate his two worlds: boxing and family. Amy Adams changes from her usual role of a cute and innocent girl to that of a college dropout with her sassy attitude. She shows her versatility and we hope to see her appear in more roles like this in the future.
But the real standout is Christian Bale. He plays Wahlberg's cocaine-addicted younger brother. He's in a supporting role, but I think he really stole the show. The end credits show the two real Ward brothers being interviewed, and it's surprising how close Bale's performances are to the real-life brothers.
The plot may be a little dated, but the performances more than make up for it. “The Fighter” is worth seeing.
true grit
The day after Christmas, I was able to see the Coen brothers' 1969 remake of the western, True Grit. I had just seen the original a few days ago and had high hopes for the remake. It met them. The two were very similar, but the dialogue was almost word for word. What I finally really understood was that nuance.
Jeff Bridges plays the drunken, gun-wielding Rooster Cogburn. The film follows 14-year-old Mattie Ross and LaBeouf, played by Matt Damon, on their journey to bring Mattie's father's killer to justice.
It was so refreshing to see a new Western. Although Westerns have lost their popularity over the past few years, True Grit proves that Westerns are still great.
black swan
My third favorite movie I saw was Black Swan, directed by David Aronofsky and starring Natalie Portman. The film centers on Nina (Portman), a young ballet dancer at a prestigious dance company, who struggles to win the lead role in a performance of “Swan Lake.''
The lead dancer plays both the innocent and cautious Swan and its evil sister, the lustful and seductive Black Swan. Nina is perfect for the role of a white swan, but she lacks the passion needed to be a black swan. “Black Swan” centers on her obsession with being both.
As many critics have already said, and I'm probably going on about this at length, Portman's performance is great. She can embody both the swan and the black swan, literally and figuratively. “Black Swan” is elegantly shot, reminding viewers that movies are art, not just an entertainment medium. It's a pretty dark movie, but it's also one of the best movies of the year.
little fockers
“Little Fockers” was the last movie I saw and my vacation ended on a bad note.
Uninteresting would be the perfect way to describe it. The film was directed by Peter Weitz, replacing former director Jay Roach of the “Meet the Parents” series. My expectations for this movie weren't that high, but with the cast consisting of Robert De Niro and Dustin Hoffman, I expected more.
I probably laughed once or twice, but the rest of the jokes were painfully humorless. Little Fockers is another sequel that was clearly made without caring about how bad the movie was. I recommend watching this movie only if you have nothing else to do. But even that would be a compliment. There were a lot of other movies released during winter break, so I hope I get a chance to see more. But for the most part, I liked what I saw, and I'm optimistic about the 2011 movies.
