Working Title closed for now....

I'm sorry to say that Working Title must go on sabbatical for a time. Earlier this year we bought a new house and are in the process of renovating it. We are now at the home stretch and my schedule is full to the brim. With a full time job and working on the house after work, there just is no time for blogging. We will be returning in the near future and will continue developing this blog as we go. Looking at the middle of September as a new starting point. Thanks for all the input and support. Keep watching movies!

Peace,

Mike

The Brothers Bloom

The Brothers Bloom is about two orphaned brothers, Stephen and Bloom, who jump from foster home to foster home all the while coming up with elaborate schemes and cons. Stephen is the older of the two. He creates, or "writes", the con much like you would write a play, filling it with scenes of symbolism and using fancy themes and such. For him the cons are a work of art. Bloom, the younger brother, is more of the character actor, playing his role to perfection and always following Stephen's lead.

When we join the two brothers, Bloom (Adrien Brody) is fed up with the con life. He is tired of playing parts and is wanting to experience something real. Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) tries to convince Bloom that there is no such thing as an "unwritten life" and the art if the con is what they are living for. Bloom decides he wants out for good and leaves for Montenegro. Stephen finds him and convinces Bloom to do one more con with him. Together with their silent partner Bang Bang (Rinko Kyuchi) they endeavor to con a lonely reclusive heiress, Penelope (Rachel Wiesz), who spends her days acting very eccentric. She has hid from the world for so long that she has no clue how to interact with it. Bloom shares this bond with her as he has never truly interacted in the world around him either. Bloom complicates everything by falling in love with Penelope. And everyone knows you should never fall in love with the mark.

Rian Johnson is the director of The Brothers Bloom. His debut feature, Brick, is one of my favorite films ever. This movie is a dire contrast to Brick. I was reminded of The Royal Tenenbaums, as the movie has the same feel and tone of Wes Anderson's film. In fact, it's not far-fetched to think of the brothers as close relatives to the Tenenbaums. I was surprised to find this style of film from the director.

The ending is very entertaining. I just do not think the journey in getting there is worth it. Like any con film there are twists and turns, and instead of feeling like it flowed naturally, I felt poked and prodded as if I was being told to "go here" and "go there".

The cast is excellent, especially Ruffalo, and the film has it's moments. But I was looking for something a little more substantial from Johnson. Skip this one and rent Brick instead.

Grade: C+

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid encompasses many movie genres. First and foremost, it is a western, in the vein that they it takes place in the wild west and is about outlaws and thievery and violence of a simpler time. It is a dramatic movie, with love and hate and life and death and hard choices to be made. And also a comedy, in the road trip kind of way, where two best friends run off on what turns out to be an epic journey. Whatever genre it chooses to play to during whatever scene, it definitely is a good movie.

Paul Newman plays Butch and Robert Redford is Sundance in what is probably one of the better actor team-ups in Hollywood history. The film opens in a sepia toned sequence during a card game and to watch Sundance eyes dance across the cards is wonderful to see. The scene serves to set up the roles our two characters fill. Butch is the comfortable thinker, always hatching plans and talking his way around and through everybody. Sundance is quite the opposite; cool, calm, very serious and very dangerous. Later they propose to rob a train, not once, but twice, much to the chagrin of the owner of the railroad who hires a posse of the best lawmen around to catch the crew. Much of the movie is spent with Butch and Sundance using all their wits and cunning to stay one step ahead of the posse while still trying to pull their heists.

Newman and Redford are great in the film and share an amazing on-screen dynamic that few have managed to imitate. Newman is one of the coolest actors in Hollywood, matched with the likes of James Dean and Steve McQueen. Redford has held is own and is just as beloved in Hollywood circles, both as an actor and director. The dialogue is well-suited for the two as they banter back and forth. You can tell that Newman and Redford were just as comfortable with each other off camera as they were on.

The movie is very well done. There seems to be some interesting symbolism I found while watching. The posse bears down on Butch and Sundance, much like the progress of the world is bearing down on the two. These men live by a simple code. There is no right or wrong, only what it takes to get by and get rich quick. They live in the here and now while the rest of the world develops railroads and becomes enamored with the bicycle. And in the end, the pressure of a new more difficult world seems to leave them out-manned and out-gunned. The sad thing about it is they never saw it coming, but we the viewer seemed to understand that Butch and Sundance represented an older mode of thinking. One that ultimately would, and did, fail.

Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid was nominated for the Best Picture Oscar in 1970. It is hailed as classic in many circles and is well worth checking out. Westerns have lost a lot of their attraction with superhero movies, shock horror, and CGI animated kiddie fare dominating the box office. Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid hearkens back to a time when life was simpler and more enjoyable, much like that era's films, especially westerns.

Grade: B+

Inception

Christopher Nolan made a movie called Inception.

It is his follow-up to the blockbuster juggernaut called The Dark Knight.

Inception is like being part of an amazing dream.

Brilliant.

Grade: A+

P.S. Screw The Dark Knight.

P.P.S. Any critic who pans Inception should be thrown into "limbo".

P.P.P.S I just realized any movie I see from here on out for the rest of my life will probably suck. Thanks for nothing, Nolan.

Labyrinth

It's sad to know that in this day and age with the advent of CGI and Pixar animated movies, with Bert and Ernie leaving behind their puppetry for the more modern feel of claymation, with stop-motion and video games becoming the core of our children's entertainment, it's sad to think that my children and their children after will never fully know the magic of Jim Henson.

Anyone in my age group knows about Jim Henson. He is the creator of some of our childhood's most beloved characters. From Kermit the Frog to Gonzo to the Fraggles, I was a fond admirer of the puppeteer. I also loved the Muppet Babies Saturday morning cartoon series. I had managed to introduce my kids to the Muppet movies with moderate success. Alas they are not fans of Fraggle Rock and have never really experienced the magic of Sesame Street. But I continue to push on and have now introduced them to Henson's two major movie productions besides the Muppet movies. His first, The Dark Crystal, is sitting on the Netflix queue awaiting it's turn. Labyrinth, a movie I remember fondly as a child, became the first of the two films they watched.

Labyrinth stars a very young Jennifer Connelly as Sarah. Sarah spends a lot of her free time acting out fantastic scenes in a world ruled by the Goblin King. Sarah is charged with babysitting her younger brother, Toby, by her stepmother and father as they head out for a date night. Babysitting Toby is not something Sarah wants to do, and when the baby cannot seem to calm down she ends up wishing that the goblins and their king would come and take him away. Of course that is exactly what happens. The Goblin King, Jareth, is played by David Bowie (channeling his Ziggy Stardust days), and makes a deal with Sarah, who realizes she made a grave mistake sending her brother away. If Sarah can solve Jareth's labyrinth in the next 13 hours, she will have her brother back. Otherwise, young Toby becomes a goblin himself. Sarah enters the labyrinth and on her journey encounters several companions (all played by puppets) including Hoggle, Ludo, and Didymus who help the young girl on her way.

The movie is full of rich eye candy. The labyrinth itself is visually interesting and the characters that inhabit it are fun and intriguing themselves. A few notables are the Junk Lady, Didymus, and the two door knockers.

I am surprised at how well the movie holds up today. There are a few things that seem dated, one being David Bowie's musical montages. The montages are presented as cheesy '80s music videos and at times really seem larger then the movie, weakening the overall structure of the film. Also, the movement of some of the puppets is very stiff, especially Hoggle and a few of the goblins.

What is really weird (and a little worrisome) is that the baby who plays Toby actually seems to be scared or distressed by all the goblin puppets when he shares scenes with them. I mean, if a baby is crying, that usually means he's upset, unless he's a damn good actor (like those babes in Look Who's Talking).

There has been some discussion by fans and critics that Sarah's journey through the labyrinth takes place all in her head. There are several clues that support this theory, at the start of the movie when we first see Sarah's room and at the end with the conversation between her and her new friends back in her room. This is an interesting premise and brings to the front an idea that the movie could be a commentary on one's journey through childhood. It says that children use their imagination to help cope with real world problems that surround them. And really, isn't that what childhood is really about? Being able to escape from the harsh reality of the adult world and find strength and solace in the magic of our minds? Maybe Henson was able to keep that ability as he grew older, and that is why his creations proved to be so wonderful for all of us.

My children did not like Labyrinth. And I must admit, it was not as good as I remember it to be (looking through my jaded adult eyes), but there is still a lot of good things in the flick. Once you fast forward through David Bowie's music video collection that is. Well, I hope that the Dark Crystal fares better.

Grade: B-

Update Delay!

I'm sad to say that this week's update will be delayed a couple of days. My schedule is overwhelmed at the moment. And although I have 4 updates planned out, I have not had time to sit and get them down. Hopefully, I will be up and running at the earliest tomorrow night. I have 2, maybe 3 movie reviews and 2 debut features for the spotlight series coming up. But with a full work schedule and 3 kids out of school for the summer, well, all work and no play make Jack a dull boy (and the kids stir crazy). Thanks for the support. And please spread the word about Working Title.

Also I am looking for someone who may want to be a writer for reviews or such. If you watch a lot of flix and you are interested drop me a line at michaelwhetzel@gmail.com. I'll let you know what I am looking for. No pay, just for the love of movies.

Peace,

Mike