Slumdog Millionaire

Trainspotting's Danny Boyle's at his best in Slumdog Millionaire, a romantic tale of a virtuous individual's shot at the big time. Jamal Malik (Dev Patel, Tanah Chheda, Ayush Mahesh Khedekar) grew up in the slums where he learned the hard way how to cope with life's injustices. Full of working class grit and tenacity, Malik boldly navigates his culture's rigid social rapids and hard-boiled ethical hardships, taking lumps and lashes all the way to a miraculous appearance on "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" His success leads to accusations of foul play and the film unreels in a series of flashbacks as the authorities harshly interrogate the legitimacy of his answers (the present requires the past to have a chance for the future). But for each and every question posed there's a personal anecdote that upholds both the veracity of his choices and the integrity of his disenfranchised education.

Malik's set up in opposition to his older brother Salim (Madhur Mittal, Ashutosh Lobo Gajiwala, Azharuddin Mohammed Ismail) who makes his way with a gun rather than his mind. In the film's ending, as Malik searches for the answer to the 20 million rupee question, Salim is shot in a bathtub full of cash, Boyle's narrative championing the individual who chose life as opposed to death to earn his living (the resolution's a little too melodramatic but whatever). However, in the end this dimension is ambiguously challenged by the unveiling of the correct answer to the question posed at the film's beginning, a challenge which problematizes his victory while simultaneously making it all the more emphatic (time, space, and the ideological chase).

Slumdog's pacing reflects the different stages of Malik's development insofar as his youth is filled with quickly moving scenes which capture life's enraptured rush and things begin to slow down as he gradually matures. An early scene poignantly points out precisely how resolute Malik is when it comes to achieving his goals as well as the enormous obstacles standing in his way. It's fun to sit back and watch as he heroically hustles and shuffles his way through life, constantly contending and coordinating with foes and friends respectively, his spirit always aware of each situation's final answer.

Twilight

Catherine Hardwicke's new teenybopper flick Twilight explores the hearty hardline separating vampires and their human counterparts. Human Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) moves from Phoenix to the small town of Forks, Washington, to live with her father (Billy Burke as Charlie Swan) and resume her studies. But Bella wasn't counting on meeting Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), a member of a local family of vampires who denies their natural thirst for human blood and feast upon animals instead (and also enjoy playing baseball). Their ferociously subdued romance turns heads and homesteads as members of the Native community (descended from wolves according to legend and wary of the Cullens) keep a sharp watch on Edward (whose family is supportively patronizing). Their foes are many and their attachment precarious but these streams still cross affectively, aptly demonstrating the illustrious intrigue engendered by a star-crossed couple unafraid to unleash their picturesque passion.

Thereby defeating Gozer.

Definitely the most romantic vampire film I've seen, Twilight's easy going slow moving pacing is problematically perforated by the introduction of villains. S'pose some kind of overt conflict's to be expected in a vampire flick, and it was made for a younger audience, but removing the formulaic evil presence (clearly included for the males of the species) and investigating the covert cultural pressures more sanguinely would have enhanced Twilight's clandestine charm, thereby structurally reflecting the sun's scintillating effects upon the Cullen's skin. Rich in bucolic beauty, drenched in kitschy sophomoric artistry, Twilight magnifies the lengthy measures a coruscating couple must resiliently recite, while wisely suggesting that it's worth it.

Seven Pounds

Seven Pounds is a touching examination of the human condition. Gabriele Muccino's text speeds things up and then flattens them out in order to capture the tenderly mysterious movements of a couple falling in love. It's a film about loss as much as it is about sacrifice and Ben Thomas (Will Smith) does his best to make the most of a dire situation. Both tragic and romantic (with Woody Harrelson demonstrating unprecedented emotional depth), Seven Pounds isolates an excruciatingly painful kernel of life and gently transmits it from dimension to another.

Yes Man

Peyton Reed's Yes Man depicts Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) as a reclusive non-committal introvert who retired from social life after the break up of his first marriage. Fortunately, he meets Nick (John Michael Higgins), a 'yes man' who subscribes to Terrence Bundley's (Terence Stamp) cult of the 'yes,' whose members say yes to everything in order to invigorate their lives. Carl reluctantly joins and discovers that life can be more exciting if one opens their mind to limitless possibility. But the excitement is countered by responsibility and the contradictions eventually engender a cathartic crisis.

Reed's comedy mixes reality and fantasy in a simplified narrative layered with internal complexities. Obviously saying yes to everything causes all kinds of problems many of which are absurd yet concretely founded. He didn't have to accept an international pseudo-bride, he could have said no to an alley fight, and there was no need to start learning another language (although he picks it up in something like three weeks). But by opening his mind to these opportunities, he learns when to say yes and when to say no, making several new friends, and beginning a relationship with the quirky musician Allison (Zooey Deschanel).

It's like Groundhog Day meets Along Came Polly while listening to 54-40. Solid performances from the cast congeal with the perspicuous pacing to present a fun romantic comedy wherein the cynic turns affably stoic through ironic hedonism. Jim Carrey's solid and competently demonstrates a wide range of emotion while still providing glimpses of his subdued chaotic sprightliness. Some of the situations don't make much sense, and certain scenes could have been cut to the improvement of others, but the overall affect is uplifting and aptly demonstrates the brighter side of life.

The Day the Earth Stood Still

The latest version of The Day the Earth Stood Still (directed by Scott Derrickson) sees Keanu Reeves (as Klaatu the alien) not trying to save humanity but destroy it. Aliens have decided that the Earth must be saved from us humans and our destructive ways since their statistics state that only a scant number of planets possess the qualities necessary to sustain life (and their projections indicate that life upon ours is irrevocably suffocating). Klaatu attempts to reason with Presidential Representative Regina Jackson (Kathy Bates) but she ain't listenin' to no alien (and neither is the President who never shows up even when the situation becomes catastrophic [a critical chide at George W.'s political awareness]). Consequently, he decides the planet must be terminated but fortunately for Earth's residents determined scientist Helen Benson (Jennifer Connelly) has just enough yip to contradict his forthright yap.

The film's not the greatest. Its format is sound and it unravels in a mildly entertaining fashion but there's no paprika in this bowl of chili and Connelly's good looks don't make up for the lack of structural subtlety (they are constantly highlighted). The actors portray their characters well but David Scarpa and Edmund H. North's by-the-book script leaves them little room to radiate (note James Hong's [Big Trouble in Little China] heartfelt cameo as Dr. Wu however). I liked how the alien 'robot' unleashes his plague nevertheless: army personnel hack away at his almost impregnable frame and sever a piece from which a nest of exponentially expanding synthetic insects lunge and swarm (a warning to volatile insurgents launching attacks against foes possessing significant militaristic advantages). But I was checking my watch when I should have been analyzing, sipping my cola when I could have been critiquing, shifting out of focus where I was supposed to be zooming in, having a seriously difficult time sitting still.