4 Reviews in 400 Words

Back in my reviewing days (ahem, Junior Movie Reviewer for the Eau Claire Leader Telegram), the word limit was 400. Now I’m going to attempt four reviews into the same 400 words. Ready, set, GO!

Julie & Julia

I may have appreciated this more because I read Julie Powell’s account. She and her husband were, for the most part, accurately portrayed, and of course Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci were a pleasure to watch. Nothing new said there. Also unoriginally, the movie made me hungry. But it was a movie about writing as well as cooking: Julia Child painstakingly rewriting Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and Julie Powell discovering fame through blog writing. Perhaps an autobiographical movie featuring Child would have been as heartwarming, but the juxtaposition of the two life stories was a refreshing storytelling format.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith

As I mentioned, I ended up not being impressed by this book. In fact, I dreaded returning to it every day. I should have known that my unabashed love for the original would keep me from enjoying an alteration. I also don’t like zombie movies, so that should have tipped me off. Grahame-Smith kept changing details which didn’t need to be changed and making obvious things that were better left unsaid. While I value the concept and applaud his ingenuity, I feel like a better version would be one in which Austen’s intent and themes remained unchanged, just with zombies.

Glee – Episode 2

This show so close to my heart DID improve after the pilot! I thought the characters more tempered, but still outlandish enough to make me laugh out loud (the cheerleading coach is hysterical). I can’t pretend to be ok with their message about sex – desires should not be suppressed, but contracepted. I’m intrigued by the main cheerleader (aka cheer-io), because she’s clearly Catholic and serious about faith. It’s usually the born-again characters who are serious. She also has the all-too-understandable motive of getting her boyfriend back. The music was awesome, especially a cover of Golddigger. I want more of that!

Marie Antoinette

This retelling of the Cake-Eater’s life directed by Sofia Coppolla totally succeeds! Everything is period (except the music), and therefore beautiful to watch. Kirsten Dunst is absolutely perfect as the naïve princess who prefers the simple life, but “parties like a rock star” when she can’t get Louis to do his duty as a husband. The film movies slowly, but Coppolla establishes monotony and repetition amidst the splendor of Versailles, making the final 15 minutes extremely powerful. Marie and Louis eat their dinner with the deafening roar of an angry mob outside, and lit be torch light. I recommend it.