No Strings Attached (2011) – Review

No Strings Attached is really funny, yet disconnected and sort of a depressing assessment of modern relationships. Ultimately, it is an entertaining and enjoyable film – thanks primarily to the witty joke writing and comical (if not zany) performances from many of the cast members. Director Ivan Reitman seems, however, to want to tell a number of different stories with the same narrative. There is a lot stuffed into the film (much like life, I guess), but the format of a sub two-hour romantic comedy does not lend itself well to tackle all the narrative issues convincingly in the allotted time (had this been stretched to a season of television, it may well have worked a lot better and felt more complete, not to mention that the narrative idea felt a bit like a television sit-com pilot). As is, it is disjointed and superficially satisfying. Sure, the audience laughs (a lot) but the deeper emotions are not there. Not due to poor performances, but more so to the out-there, exaggerated nature of the comedy and hollow characters. The most difficult relationship to feel anything for was Adam’s with his father. The father character is not real, or at least does not feel that way at all. He oozes with forced humor intentions, while being completely awful to his son – resulting in a character and scenes that are neither funny nor illicit emotional connection/development. When, he does find his heart and reconnects with his son, no one cares because the relationship was meaningless to the audience from the beginning. Reitman also does something quite interesting (whether on purpose or not) in his juxtaposing the silly humor against the sad state that modern relationships are in. The ‘real’ love examples the audience are given play out mostly off screen, while the highly problematic relationships are forced upon the audience (one of them being Adam and Emma’s – while they do like each other on some level, it does not feel like they will make it, the ending having a slight awkward The Graduate feeling to it, though not nearly as poignant). Whether or not relationships in the film (primarily the one of the main characters) accurately mirror the current state of dating or not is secondary to their comparison to those of romantic comedies past (a genre that in recent years has faltered for the most part). Watching this film leaves an overall feeling of sadness while romantic comedies generally leave the audience feeling good. And so, while it is an interesting approach for Reitman and writer Elizabeth Meriwther to take (plus, in a world of remakes trying original concepts is greatly welcomed); it seems to ultimately leave the film feeling disconnected. The narrative is depressing for the most part, and yet the audience is told to laugh (and does so) throughout creating the disconnection from the deeper emotional turmoil the film is addressing. Thus, the narrative does not succeed (however, for those reading deeper into the film, Reitman does create a clashing of emotions akin to taking uppers and downers). The other issue is with the character of Adam. He really has no character. He is in a sense the ultimate straight-man allowing all those around him to be crazy. But, this is really his film and thus his character needed more. The audience only relates to him through projection of their own experiences and feelings. No Strings Attached is difficult to completely peg – it is very funny at times (though certainly geared towards a younger audience) and in being so entertaining and likable, but for those wanting more, like a complete narrative with real characters, it falls short.

Technical and acting achievements: Ivan Reitman has had a tough go of it in the last decade or so, directing mostly terrible films. Thus, it is good to see that the director who made many of my favorite childhood comedies (Ghost Busters being one of my top five favorites of all-time) actually make an entertaining film again. John Debney’s score and Rogier Stoffers’s cinematography were adequate for the type of film that this was (nothing special, but really not needing to be). However, Ida Random’s production design and sets/locations were aesthetically interesting. The cast is what really elevated this film (which is true really with any romantic comedy). Lake Bell, Chris Bridges, Olivia Thirlby, and Mindy Kaling provide good supporting work and some very funny moments. However, very good actors Cary Elwes and Kevin Kline were underused (and seemingly pointless to have an actor of his caliber in the role) and just not good respectively. Greta Gerwig and Jake M. Johnson were fantastic in their supporting roles. Both had some of the best and funniest moments; Gerwig stealing most of the scenes she was in. Ashton Kutcher plays the straight-man almost to the extent of being interchangeable with any other good looking late 20s early 30s male (though it is not completely his fault, his character was written hollowly without much emotional connection to the audience). Natalie Portman is good in the film (serving also as an executive producer), both powerful in the dramatic scenes while having great timing in the comedic ones.

No Strings Attached is probably the most entertaining and funny film to have a narrative that does not really work at all. 6/10

Natalie Portman – Movies Spotlight – January 2011

Natalie Portman is best known for her daring roles as a child-actor, Padme in the new Star Wars Trilogy and being one of the best actresses of her generation, culminating in a likely Best Actress Oscar this February for Black Swan. Throughout her career, she has managed a good mix of prestige and big films, with a few rom-coms thrown in. This month she stars alongside Ashton Kutcher in No Strings Attached, a romantic comedy about two friends that engage in a strictly sex only relationship only to find that they want more (trailer).

Early Career:

Portman began her career at the age of four, taking dancing lessons and performing as part of a local troupe, which is where she got her absolute love of dancing and ballet (leading to her always wanting to do a film about a dancer which finally became Black Swan). Then at age ten, she was offered to be a child model for Revlon but turned it down to focus on acting, spending many school holidays at drama camps. She auditioned for the off-Broadway show Ruthless! about a girl who would kill to get the lead in a school play. Portman ended up being the understudy for Laura Bell Bundy – the other understudy was Britney Spears. Then in 1994 she got her big break, as she was cast by Luc Besson in his hit man film The Professional. The role was very adult-like and caught the attention of many critics and filmmakers. Once cast, she decided to use her grandmother’s maiden name “Portman” as her stage name.

Building Her Career After Her Breakthrough:

With the critical and commercial success and rave reviews for her performance in The Professional, Portman had good roles for great directors coming her way. She got a supporting part in Michael Mann’s superb crime-drama Heat, which again saw her character shown in a very adult situation and she got to share scenes with Al Pacino. Next, she had a major role stealing the heart(s) of the main character and the audience in Beautiful Girls. Woody Allen then cast her in his musical romantic comedy Everyone Says I Love You. She also played the daughter of the President of the United States in Tim Burton’s outrageous comedy Mars Attacks!. At this point in her career, she had quite a track record working with some of the best directors and making interesting films. She was also Baz Luhrmann’s first choice to play Juliet in his Romeo + Juliet, but producers felt she was too young. She took a break from film in 1997 to star as Anne Frank on Broadway.

Star Wars and Harvard:

Then came international recognition in 1999, as she took the role as Padme in her first blockbuster: George Lucus’s Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (or as we call the trilogy, the films that ruined Star Wars). That year she also got her first award recognition, being nominated for a Golden Globe for her supporting performance in Anywhere But Here. Initially, she had turned down the role because her character had a sex scene, but co-star Susan Sarandon and director Wayne Wang were set on having her in the film and had the script rewritten. She next stared as a teenage mother in Where the Heart Is. Upon completion of the film, she moved into the dorms at Harvard University, where she would graduate with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, focusing on her studies, filming her part in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones during her summer break. She also had time to take the role of Nina in Mike Nichols’s adaptation of Chekhov’s Seagull, which opened in 2001 on New York’s Public Theater and co-starred Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline and Philip Seymour Hoffman. She additionally filmed a small role in the multiple Oscar nominated Cold Mountain and finished her commitment to the Star Wars Trilogy with Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, the biggest box office film of her career.

Hollywood Leading Lady:

With school and Star Wars behind her, Portman decided to take a role in Zach Braff’s indy comedy Garden State, a film that immediately returned her to darling status among film fans, as it and her performance were well received (not to mention that her character introduces The Shins to the world). Next she worked again with Mike Nichols playing a pole-dancer who seduces Clive Owen in Closer, which garnered her first Oscar nomination (for supporting actress). Continuing her string of critical successes, she next starred in the very well received graphic novel adaptation V for Vendetta, which marked her first (true) leading role in a big film. Continuing to work with top directors, Portman next starred in Milos Forman’s Goya’s Ghosts, took a supporting role in Kar Wai Wong’s My Blueberry Nights and co-starred with Jason Schwartzman in Wes Anderson’s prologue to his fantastic film The Darjeeling Limited (which she also has a cameo in) Hotel Chevalier. However, next she would take roles in the critical and commercial flops Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium and The Other Boleyn Girl. Portman returned, however, with great performances in Jim Sheridan’s Iraq War drama Brothers and Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan, becoming one of Hollywood’s most sought-after leading ladies with her tragic and beautiful performance.

Future Projects:

Portman has been busy and has a packed upcoming schedule with six potential films being released in 2011 (plus she is currently pregnant and engaged). First she has this month’s No Strings Attached (mentioned above). Next on the slate is David Gordon Green, Danny McBride and Ben Best’s adventure stoner comedy Your Highness (which looks amazing), co-starring James Franco and McBride. From her digital short with Lonely Island, Portman has shown her knack for silly comedy (and I am really interested to see how this film turns out). In May, she has her next big blockbuster starring in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor (trailer), as Chris Hemsworth’s love interest (not sure if she will make it into Joss Whedon’s Avengers film though). She also has Hesher co-starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, The Other Woman a film about a woman’s difficult relationship with her stepson (trailer) and the sci-fi film Cloud Atlas by Tom Tykwer (though it will probably be pushed to 2012) potentially with 2011 release dates.

Natalie Portman’s Selected Career Highlights:

1.)    The Professional (1994)* – lead – available on Blu-ray/DVD

2.)    Heat (1995)* – supporting – available on Blu-ray/DVD

3.)    Beautiful Girls (1996) – supporting – available on DVD

4.)    Mars Attacks! (1996) – supporting – available on Blu-ray/DVD

5.)    Garden State (2004)* – lead – available on DVD

6.)    Closer (2004) – supporting – available on Blu-ray/DVD

7.)    V for Vendetta (2006)* – lead – available on Blu-ray/DVD

8.)    Hotel Chevalier (2007)* – lead – available on Blu-ray/DVD

9.)    Brothers (2009) – lead – available on Blu-ray/DVD

10.) Black Swan (2010)* – lead

*editor’s picks

Natalie Portman’s filmography is also available on Netflix.com to rent and stream.

At the Movies – January 2011 – Part 2: Hollywood Films

Romance and Rom-Coms:

No Strings Attached (Ivan Reitman) – Romantic Comedy – Jan 21^st

The film is about Adam and Emma, best friends who decide to enter into a purely plutonic but sexual relationship, the problem is they both begin to want more. Director Ivan Reitman made my favorite film of all-time (Ghost Busters) and other classics like Stripes, but he has frankly only made terrible movies over the last sixteen or so years. Thus, I am very skeptical of anything he directs, despite my love of some of his earlier films. Reitman has a pretty good crew on the film with composer John Debney, cinematographer Rogier Stoffers and production designer Ida Random. But films like this are much more dependent on the director and cast, and this one has a great group of actors. It co-stars Ashton Kutcher (who does decent work given a good project) and Natalie Portman (coming off amazing work in Black Swan). The supporting players also make this film interesting featuring Cary Elwes (the Dread Pirate Roberts), Kevin Kline, Lake Bell, Olivia Thirlby, Mindy Kaling, and Greta Gerwig (who endeared herself to many a film-fan with her performance in Greenberg). The film looks funny (even though we have all seen this movie a hundred times before with other titles), but I still just do not trust Reitman – I hope I am wrong and this is indeed good. Check out the trailer.

Fun Movies:

Season of the Witch (Dominic Sena) – Adventure – Jan 7^th

The film is about 14^th century knights who transport a young girl suspected of being a witch to a monastery where she is to be destroyed. Director Dominic Sena does not have the best track record, and thus there are not high hopes for this film (at least by me). Though, he does generally make entertaining films (on some level). He has an international crew on the film with Icelandic composer Atli Orvarsson, Iranian cinematographer Amir M. Mokri and German production designer Uli Hanisch. The film has a great low-key cast with only Nicholas Cage (who does have great performances amidst his craziness, see Kick-Ass for reference, and this for fun), Ron Perlman and Christopher Lee as the widely known faces.  It also features Claire Foy (who starred in the critically acclaimed Little Dorrit), Robert Sheehan (who was good in the Red Riding Trilogy), Ulrich Thomsen, Stephen Graham, and Stephen Campbell Moore. The film looks to be a large scale action/horror adventure and entertaining for genre fans (but of course the director has me questioning just how well the film will turn out). Check out the trailer.

The Green Hornet (Michel Gondry) – Action – Jan 14^th

The film is about the Britt Reid, playboy son of a newspaper mogul. When his father is murdered, Reid decides to make something of his life. He takes over his father’s business by day and becomes a crime-fighter by night. This film which initially was a project of Kevin Smith’s then passed to Stephen Chow only to then fall into the hands of visionary and abstract director Michel Gondry (making it immediately a million times more interesting). The screenplay is by the successful team of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Pineapple Express and Superbad). Gondry, doing his first action film, has an action-experienced crew with composer James Newton Howard (The Dark Knight), cinematographer John Schwartzman (The Rock) and production designer Owen Paterson (The Matrix). The film stars Rogen and features Jay Chou, Cameron Diaz and Christoph Waltz in its principal supporting roles. Tom Wilkinson, Edward James Olmos and Edward Furlong also have supporting roles. Gondry’s involvement makes this film worth a look just because he generally makes creative and interesting films (though not always good). However, this has been delayed a bunch and the initial trailer was bad. The new trailer (see below) is lot better and actually funny. The cast is also quite intriguing (I am a huge fan of Waltz and Wilkinson and find Rogen’s work funny, usually). All in all, I do not really know how to feel about this – I want to see it, but my gut tells me it is going to be bad. Check out the trailer.

The Dilemma (Ron Howard) – Comedy – Jan 14^th

The film is about two best friends. One discovers that the other’s wife is having an affair. Now, he is faced with the dilemma (see what I did there) of whether or not he should tell his best friend what he knows. Director Ron Howard has mainly been focusing on big and prestige films of late, thus it is sort of a surprise to see him directing a buddy comedy such as this, especially one relegated to January (or maybe this is his penance for some mediocre work in the past, yeah I’m looking at you Edtv). But, Howard being a big-name director has its perks – like getting Hans Zimmer to score the film and Salvatore Totino to shoot it (though he does shoot all Howard’s recent stuff). Long-time set decorator turned production designer Daniel B. Clancy is designing the film. It co-stars Vince Vaughn and Kevin James (maybe Jon Favreau was too busy with Cowboys & Aliens) and features supporting work from Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder, Channing Tatum, Talulah Riley, and Queen Latifah. The film already is surrounded by controversy due to the use of the word “gay” in the initial trailer, not to mention that it does not look like much more than an amalgamation of other comedies previously released. This movie will live on the ability of James and Vaughn to have good chemistry and above all else be funny. Check out the trailer.

The Mechanic (Simon West) – Action – Jan 28^th

The film is a remake of the 1972 movie of the same name about an elite hit man whose mentor is killed. The hit man sets off on a mission of revenge against those that killed his mentor with a new apprentice, the son of his mentor. Director Simon West is known for his action films and thus is a good fit for the project (while he makes entertaining films, none are very good films). West has an ok crew on the film with composer Mark Isham, cinematographer Eric Schmidt and interesting production designer Richard Lassalle. The film does have a good cast starring action veteran Jason Statham and very good Ben Foster (each of his characters is more interesting than the last; he was great in 3:10 to Yuma). Donald Sutherland is featured in a supporting role. The film looks to be an entertaining action film with elaborate and hopefully cool assassin set pieces (but not much more should be expected). Check out the trailer.

The Rite (Mikael Hafstrom) – Horror – Jan 28^th

The film is about an American priest who travels to Italy to study exorcisms. During his studies, he is skeptical but soon realizes that possession is indeed real as he is pulled into a frightening truth. Swedish director Mikael Hafstrom has a good track record with horror-thrillers (though does not have a great film to his name yet). He has a very good crew on the film with composer Alex Heffes, great D.P. Ben Davis and production designer Andrew Laws. The cast is also very good – starring Colin O’Donoghue and Anthony Hopkins with Alice Braga, Ciaran Hinds (who is awesome in Rome), Rutger Hauer (awesome in Blade Runner), and Toby Jones in support. The films looks like it will be scary and should feature good aesthetics and performances. Check out the trailer.