“Her” is the perfect Spike
Jonze film. It smashes story-telling ground with a keen eye on a misfit that
takes an outlandish idea -– think mind travel in “Being John Malkovich” –- and
makes it instantly accessible. Now. Beautiful. Dark. The story: Theodore (Joaquin
Phoenix) is a writer for a website that provides “real” hand written
letters for other couples, but he knows little about love himself. His
marriage crashed, and when a date suggests a relationship, Theo bolts. Prone to
online porn and games, Theo to his mild dismay falls in love with his newest gadget,
an OS that’s therapist, camera, encyclopedia, and lover all in one. She names
herself Samantha (voiced by Scarlett Johansson) and is everything Theo ever
wanted in a woman: On when he needs her, off when he does not. The idea is
ridiculous. Jonze lets us know that as Theo hides his burgeoning love until
he succumbs truly, deeply to Sam’s charms. We fall and hurt with him.
Yes, “Her” is about our IM/texting-mad world and the disappearing art of and yet longing for human
touch, but it also is flat-out perfection for anyone ever in or out of love,
and future curious. A
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Me
Movie reviews in 200 words, more of less.
Me
My take on films by
- Steven D. A. Mackay
- I love movies that thrill, challenge, move and excite me, no matter their genre, origin, year of creation, or language. I detest being pandered to and insulted, or blinded by glitz. For the sport of writing I will keep my reviews to 200 words or less. Not always, but for the most part. Some films demand a long response, be they great, bad, or simply baffling. I am a writer by trade, and if I cannot be precise, I need to be silent. Also know this: I do not turn my brain off or leave my brain at the door when I watch a movie, I have plenty of time to not think after I die. Hope you enjoy, even if you disagree.
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Blog Archive
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2014
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January
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- Dallas Buyers Club (2013)
- August: Osage County (2013)
- Blue Jasmine and Philomena (both 2013)
- Back to the Future (1985)
- The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (1947)
- Kick Ass 2 (2013)
- The World’s End (2013)
- Her (2013)
- Despicable Me 2 (2013)
- Stand Up Guys (2013)
- American Hustle (2013)
- Frozen (2013)
- Jurassic Park (1993)
- The Thing from Another World (1951)
- Suspicion (1941)
- All is Lost (2013)
- The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
- Saving Mr. Banks (2013)
- Turbo (2013)
- Stoker (2013)
- We Steal Secrets: The Story of Wikileaks (2013)
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January
(21)
Favorite Films
- 1. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)
- 2. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
- 3. The Godfather, Parts 1 and 2 (1972, 1974)
- 4. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
- 5. Network (1976)
- 6. Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
- 7. Pulp Fiction (1994)
- 8. There Will be Blood (2007)
- 9. Pinnochio (1940)
- 10. M (1931)
- And ... The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), The Apartment (1960), Apocalypse Now (1979), Badlands (1973), Blue Velvet (1986), Bridge on the River Kwai (1957), The Conversation (1974), Die Hard (1988), Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964), E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), A Face in the Crowd (1957), The French Connection (1971), The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966), Goodfellas (1990), The Incredibles (2004), L.A. Confidential (1997), Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001-2003), Memento (2001), Miller's Crossing (1990), Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975), Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), Pan's Labyrinth (2006), The Producers (1968), Ran (1985), Rosemary's Baby (1968), Saving Private Ryan (1998), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), Strangers on a Train (1951), The Sweet Smell of Success (1957), Toy Story (1995), Tree of Life (2011), Unforgiven (1992), The Wages of Fear (1953)
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