Movie reviews, I love film

The Fighter - I didn’t get to see the Fighter in the theater, but I wanted to. When I got a copy I saw it on a small television. I really appreciated this film. I think Christian Bale is an incredible actor as is Mark Wahlberg. The lengths that actors go to for their art is mind boggling. The Fighter is based on a true story so the pressure is always on for the actors to bring the characters to life and be true to the people they are portraying. So many times you get actors that don’t even look like the original people. Of course it depends on who has the rights to the story and the input they may have on the filming.
There’s some great talent in this film. Amy Adams and Melissa Leo give outstanding performances. I never paid attention to Melissa Leo, not noticing that she was the same woman from the series, Treme. Now she is an Oscar winning actress.
The adorable Amy Adams becomes a fowl mouthed barmaid and plays this role quite well. Some of the characters are quirky and seem like cartoon characters at times, but that adds to the realism. We all have those moments where we act a little crazy, where we get playful. I always root for the underdog and this film was worth the second watch and is now a part of my collection.

Joan Rivers - I’ve always thought that Joan Rivers was interesting. I didn’t always find her jokes funny, but like sushi, its an acquired taste. She’s one of those comediennes that you love to hate. I watched a documentary about her life up until she did Celebrity Apprentice. I was in for quite the surprise. Since I had only seen Joan Rivers from time to time on Johnny Carson and perhaps a few other shows, I never knew she had such a fowl mouth. She is over the top in some of her jokes, but she was cutting edge for a female comedienne and paved the way for many others. It’s interesting to see how Joan Rivers killed her career and her fight to come back and continue to reinvent herself. The emphasis has always been on her plastic surgeries, but at 75 depending on the camera angle she looks okay, even though we know don’t see her face move. There are some moments where her eyes water, but we never see a tear roll down her face. I think the documentary gives a good look at what some celebrities have to go through. It’s hard for everyone in the business because its all about the money. As long as you can sell tickets everyone wants to be your friend. The minute you loose that appeal then you begin to descend. In Hollywood you really need to be nice to everyone because the people you screw on your way up are the people you may need on your way down.
A lot of people don’t watch documentaries unless they are recommended. There aren’t a lot of theaters that even show them so we have to rely on Sundance if you are luckily enough to have cable or you have to check out PBS. If you like Joan Rivers, the you must certainly check out this documentary.

The Eyes of Tammy Faye - As is obvious with the title of this blog, I love movies. Drama, Action, comedy, foreign, animation and documentaries. As with everything I do, I have to be in a certain mood to watch a certain program. I prefer to watch foreign films on a Sunday. Sunday’s are my day to relax and I can read the subtitles without having to think about other things that need to be done.
The Eyes of Tammy Faye is the story of the wife of Evangelist Jim Baker, founder and one time head of the PTL. The story is very interesting of the rise of two Christians and their fall from grace and Tammy’s attempts to keep her head above water. We never hear if Tammy had plastic surgery, but she did have some modifications done to her face. Her eyebrows, and eye shadow were permanent. She had many wigs and she used individual eye lashes that she replaced as they fell out. When you first begin to look at the documentary you focus on her eyes. You can see the pain despite the smile she tries to keep. Her acceptance of others and standing by her man. Tammy was just a by stander in the PTL scandal, but she was enjoying the ride. Money certainly changes people to the point they don’t even see that they are doing anything wrong. You sort of get an attitude that it is your right.
The documentary follows the rise and the fall and Tammy’s rise again and being excepted back into a community she so loved. There are some funny moments as in life their should be. There are some embarrassing moments, but nothing is held back. There are some people that didn’t want to be a part of the documentary. It always makes you wonder when someone says no to an interview. Are they afraid they are going to be made to look bad? I mean that can happen whether you agree or not. If you know you’ve done nothing wrong…
Some of the things that happened seem like something from a movie, but this stuff does happen and not just to celebrities. If you’ve ever watched Jim and Tammy Faye Baker you must see this documentary. It is an eye opener. (Pun intended)

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Coming up: The classic, Stand by Me