pamela-150

I have watched a few Hallmark romances and this is the first time I've seen a Hallmark couple interact as if they were really in live with each other. Adorably real...these two should be cast again with each other..refreshing...and real. Kudos.

I am very savvy moviegoer and I am willing to take a chance on quirky offerings. However, this movie is underwritten, clichéd, under directed, and really, truly, deeply boring--which is something I never thought I'd say about a Cohen Brothers movie. It's all over the place. Each character is a one-joke card board cut out. Brilliant actors like Ralph Fiennes and Tatum Channing are severely underused. The plot does not hang together and Josh Brolin's character seems to meander through the plot; he's either underwritten as a character or badly acted by Brolin. Robert Altman made these send-up films in a much better way. I almost feel insulted that movie critics by and large loved this movie--but I think it's a clap trap of badly written and poorly acted essaylets that not only are not entertaining, but are actually boring. Sorry folks; I love film and I generally give the benefit of the doubt to almost everyone's efforts. However, I can share that I actually considered pulling out my phone and starting to play scrabble--I was that bored during this move. Sorry Clooney, you don't float my boat at all. Cohen Bros--go back to the drawing board and review what made Raising Arizona so refreshing.

I adore this movie. Every time I see it, I fall in love with the characters, the performers, the music, and staging all over again. Amy Adams continues to amaze, but Francis McDormand is so utterly charming that I can't take my eyes off her. Ciaran Hinds and Lee Pace as the love interests hit just the right notes. But my best praise goes to the director, Bharat Nalluri, who directs it like a stage play and sells it like a movie. This film is so inspiring, chic, and self effacing that I am putting it in my personal cue so on bad days, I can watch it and feel inspired again. See it if you like bold panache, lyrical music, big band sounds, handsome acting, and sumptuous decor. Merci!