Movies: A weekend with the Flu

While attempting to recuperate for the weekend I was able to catch up on quite a few 2005 releases. No duds here! I liked them all.


I had never heard Johnny Cash's music, other than the song "Ring of Fire," when I sat down to watch Walk the Line. I didn't know anything about the so-called Man in Black, so I couldn't really tell you how dead on Joaquin Phoenix's performance was, or whether or not Reese Witherspoon became June Carter, as one critic put it. What I can say is that Cash was an intriguing fellow and I very much enjoyed learning about his story. It's impossible to call the plot formulaic, because from what I've read it was a very accurate portrayal of Cash's life. Phoenix and Witherspoon did an amazing job with the vocals, and their performances were entirely believable, although like I said I can't vouch for the authenticity. Jon Stewart might have been partially right at the Oscars when he said it is Ray with white people, but in the end I think both Ray and Walk the Line effectively tell the story of two unique individuals with lives worth learning about.



What does A History of Violence have to offer? It's an action movie with a brain. I'll admit that I found some of the acts of violence gratifying to watch (For that I blame my brother and all those Schwarzenegger and Van Damme movies). And HELLO, the sex scenes in this movie were pretty damn hot. But ass-whoopings and animal sex aside, the film explores a concept that I find fascinating. Is violence a part of human nature? Is it ever justified? I've read some reviews that condemn the stupid American audience for cheering on the violent acts in this movie, but I would have to disagree with that point of view. Is it wrong to cheer on the nerd when he finally beats the high school bully to a bloody pulp? Is it wrong to cheer on the diner owner when he kills the man who was just pointing a gun in his face? I don't know if it's wrong, but I certainly cheered. I find that whole "Violence is never the answer" attitude to be very simplistic. The issue is too complex to be dealt with in absolutes. In other words, never say never.


Three... Extremes reminds me of the Scary Stories collections that I used to read by Alvin Schwartz (although this is definitely not one for the kids). It's divided into three separate tales of terror, each told by different directors--one from Hong Kong, Korea, and Japan. If you haven't seen an Asian horror film, get ready for a new experience. This one, like others I've seen, moves at a slow pace and manages to be beautiful and unimaginably creepy at the same time. They each might leave you a little confused at the end, but you'll definitely be entertained.


My dad was a Marine who served in Vietnam, and my brother was in the Army and served for the first year of the Iraq war--so I approached Jarhead with a pretty strong understanding and affection for military men. Sometimes they can be misogynistic and stupid, but underneath it all they are good men who are just trying to survive in circumstances that civilians can't even fathom. Even if you hate war movies, I would suggest that you check out Jarhead because it's not really a "war movie" in the traditional sense. It tells the story of Desert Storm, which lasted about 4 days. So the majority of the movie is about Marines waiting to go to war, and what that does to their psyche. Most of the men who served in Desert Storm never had to fire a gun; this movie explores how they deal with training for war and becoming veterans of the war that never really happened.