Buffalo '66

March 20.

"Buffalo 66" begins as Billy (played by the writer-director Vincent Gallo) is released from prison and needs to pee. I think that sets the tone for the whole movie. It's weird and great. There are so many scenes worth repeating and re-watching.
The quirky movie follows Billy as he kidnaps a woman (Christina Ricci) to pose as his wife for his parents. It makes no sense why she goes along with him and I expected to learn more about her, but why ruin a good thing.
I don't know which character I liked best. Billy is crazy. The photo booth scene proves that. Ricci has an awesome tap dance scene in a bowling alley. Billy's parents are obsessed with the Buffalo Bills. His mother is still mad at her son for making her go into labor and miss the 1966 Super Bowl. And his father is kinda creepy and has another great scene where he sings to Ricci.
It's too bad Gallo hasn't made more movies, but there are a few I will have to see.

Alice in Wonderland

March 20.

My expectations weren't really high for Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland." I wanted to like it, visually it looked amazing, but Burton has disappointed me before. Boba agreed to go even though I think she expected less than I did. We made our way to The Palms so we could see it in IMAX 3D and with no signs of Jimmy D, we settled in for what turned out to be an unnecessary sequel to the beloved story.

It was, as expected, visually interesting. But, I didn't like the back story given to any of the characters, and the Mad Hatter was the most depressing. The charm of Lewis Carroll's original is the nonsense of it all. This adaptation answered questions I didn't have and jumbled characters and scenes I always loved.

Johnny Depp and Burton have made some memorable movies together. But the last few years have been a letdown. Maybe they should take a break.

Wall Street

March 20.

"Wall Street" is one of those movies I kind of knew about but never saw because I was 8 when it came out and don't have much interest in finance, but I saw Shia LeBeouf talking about the soon-to-be released sequel and thought it might be interesting. (Although, part two was supposed to be in theaters already and was held up for some reason, always a bad sign.)

"Wall Street" kept my interest but I didn't find myself rooting for any of the characters. Charlie Sheen played the young broker, Bud Fox, who was trying to break into the world of the stock market. He didn't come across as special, intelligent, or likeable and I wasn't hoping he'd succeed. Michael Douglas was Gordon Gekko, the successful mentor who let Bud into the realm of the yuppie. He wasn't very likeable either, but he wasn't supposed to be liked. His character was a bit one-dimensional but a good villain can be fun.

This movie is so dated it was uncomfortable. There was even a classic montage featuring Daryl Hannah, who played Bud's girlfriend and interior designer, transforming his Upper East Side apartment into a palace of pastel and paint splatter. Ah, the 80s.

Remember Me

March 13.

Let me start by saying "Remember Me" wasn't great. It seemed to need some editing, but the story and characters are haunting me. Maybe it's because I didn't realize what it was about and didn't see what was coming, but I almost feel like I need to see it again after knowing how it ends.

I've only ever seen Robert Pattinson as a child in "Harry Potter," but I thought he was really good as Tyler. And he did a great American accent. Emilie de Ravin, who plays his love interest Ally, I know well as Claire in "Lost". I had a little trouble buying the Aussie actress as an American girl who grew up in Queens, but oh, well.

The story took so many turns, and centered around so many people I felt like it should have been a miniseries, but I liked the characters and wanted to know them more. I was never bored and wasn't ready for it to end. Even though, in the last few moments I knew there was no where else for it to go.

New York, I Love You

March 6.

You'd think with my love of New York and movies I would have seen "New York, I Love You" in the theater, but I didn't. I saw "Paris je t'aime," which is also made up of shorts set in the cities named in their respective titles. I loved "Paris" and intended to see "New York," so when Boba recommended it I bumped it on Netflix and got to it.

It was a little different than "Paris" because the people and scenes sometimes crossed but the fragmented stories, each with a glimpse into a moment of someone's life, was there. I, of course, liked some stories more than others. My favorite centered around an old, married couple played by Cloris Leachman and Eli Wallach. It was sweet, a bit sad, and funny.

Although overall I liked the movie it didn't feel as New York to me as "Paris je t'aime" felt French. Maybe that's because I've only been to Paris once and don't really know what it's like. Most of "New York" seemed dark and frenzied. And New York City may be the latter, but, in my experience, it can be bright and fun, too.

The Ghost Writer

March 6.

I definitely felt weird about going to see "The Ghost Writer," which was edited in 2009 by the writer-director of the film, Roman Polanski, while he was in a Swiss prison waiting to hear if he would be brought back to the U.S. to stand trial for raping a 13 year old in 1977. Should I have boycotted, I still don't know. But, since I'm just sharing my thoughts on movies I have to say, I loved this political thriller about the ghost writer of the former British Prime Minister.

It's set in Martha's Vineyard during the winter (although it was shot in Germany). The cold, deserted beach town is a creepy backdrop for the story, which starts with the first ghost writer washing up on the small island's shore. Prime Minister Adam Lang, played by Pierce Brosnan, is in hiding trying to finish the book and Ewan McGregor is hired as the new ghost. There are a lot of twists and turns and, you'll see as you read my blog that I never see the end coming.