The Wrestler (4 out of 5)
Randy 'The Ram' Robinson was a big name wrestler in his younger days, maybe the biggest. He is now a has-been trying to hang on by working the local wrestling circuit. He is a legend among his fellow wrestlers and their fans but his evenings are spent alone. He lives to be in the squared circle and supplements the meager purses by working at a local grocery store. He spends many evenings at a strip club where he has become friends with an aging striper named Cassidy. She is not interested in anything more than friends but does agree to help him pick out a Christmas gift for his estranged daughter. His life starts to pick up when he gets a opportunity to recreate his most famous match at huge convention for a big payday. Just as he is starting to connect with his daughter and with Cassidy a health issue may change everything.
The cast is impeccable and everything else about this film is brilliant. The wrestling action is amazing and very realistic, largely because much of it was filmed at actual wrestling events. Above all this is a relationship movie and it is the chemistry of the cast that makes it work. Where ever this film playing it is worth the trip to see it.
Bride Wars (3 out of 5)
Liv and Emma have been friends since they were little girls. One fateful day their parents took them to lunch at The Plaza Hotel in New York City where they looked in on a beautiful wedding. Since then they both dreamed of a June wedding at The Plaza. Years later they both get engaged at the same time and each manages to secure one of the last June bookings at The Plaza. They are ecstatic until a mix-up means they are getting married at the same time. Unable to resolve the problem they both proceed with their wedding plans without their best friend. It isn't long before they are sabotaging each other's plans.
I am a big fan of both Hathaway and Hudson and they didn't disappoint me. The negatives are the idiotic situation, the pointless narration (I hate pointless narration - its a movie show me don't tell me) and, for most men, the obsession with the perfect wedding. Liv and Emma are modern professional women until they get engaged and then they turn into giggly school girls - and that is half the fun of this film. There are some very funny moments that make the film entertaining enough. And then there is Hathaway's show-stopping dance that women may find funny but men will definitely find sexy.
Not really a romantic comedy this is more of a different type of buddy film than we are used to seeing. Guys take your gal and ladies make it a night out with the girls.
The Pool (3 out of 5)A boy working in a hotel becomes obsessed with a swimming pool in the upscale section of Panjim, Goa in India. He stops by every day to look at the pool from a nearby hillside. There is never anyone at home. He came to the big town from the countryside with a younger friend who tells him to just sneak in and take a swim but he is determined to be invited to take a dip in the pool. They work hard and often pick-up extra work and can be found eating greasy food and drinking tea every afternoon. Then one day when watching the pool he sees that a family has moved in and the father is constantly working on the garden. He arranges to run into the father and arrange to help him out in the garden. Before long he is working with the father and making friends with the daughter.
His obsession changes his life and those of everyone around him. This is a slow seemingly uneventful film but there is a lot going on. You will become involved with the characters. The India depicted here is a quiet, beautiful place with very interesting people. The relationships that develop in the film are natural and believable but everything is not as they seem. The film is in Hindi with English sub-titles. If you are a fan of foreign language films this one is worth the drive to the local art house to see.
Reviews courtesy:
David at the Snack Bar
