Marie Antoinette (2006)

"Marie Antoinette" was a strange film that didn't seem to be completely historically accurate.  Kirsten Dunst played the namesake while Jason Schwartzman played the king of France.  Sofia Coppola's film mixed modern music in with this period piece, which was interesting, but probably not the best choice.  If I could use one word to describe this film, it would be "indulgent."  I suppose that was what they were going for, but the film felt like such a fluff piece.  There were so many images of Dunst prancing around in various gowns and eating various desserts.  There wasn't much substance to the film except the constant story about sex and the lack thereof between the various couples.  The film did include the "let them eat cake" quote, but didn't include the famous ending to the story.
Overall, it was a disappointment.  It gets 3 out of 5 stars.

Friends with Benefits (2011)

I went and watched "Friends with Benefits" with my husband at the theatre today.  Mila Kunis and Justin Timberlake star in a film about two friends who decide they can have sex without romantic involvement.  The movie is much more crude than you would expect, even with that title.  Both friends come from broken families and have personal issues that keep them from lasting romantic relationships with other people.  As expected, the two cannot have sex without it getting messy emotionally, and the ending you would expect eventually happens.  The movie is very cliche, has some cute moments, but overall was just okay.  For a romantic comedy, it is average.  Save your money and watch it on DVD.
This film gets 3 out of 5 stars.

Conviction (2010)

"Conviction" is based on a true story about a woman who didn't graduate from high school but then works her way through law school in order to get her brother out of prison.  She believes that her brother was wrongly accused and ultimately convicted of the brutal murder of an elderly woman in a small town in Massachusetts.  This woman devotes her entire life to her brother's cause, which causes her marriage to fail and causes her kids to leave her.  However, you are truly inspired by her conviction to finish law school just so she can become her brother's lawyer and work on getting him out of jail where he is serving a life sentence without parole.  The movie was gritty and touching, and sometimes depressing.  The corruption in the legal system was appalling and the destruction of lives shown in the film was sad.
The movie was well done and you really connect with the main character, played by Oscar winner Hilary Swank.  This film gets 4 out of 5 stars.

 

The Importance of Being Earnest (2002)

"The Importance of Being Earnest" is an odd movie adapted from an Oscar Wilde play with a cast that includes Colin Firth, Rupert Everett, Reese Witherspoon, and Judi Dench.  In this film, Firth and Everett both use the pseudonym Ernest while trying to court separate ladies.  However, their lies catch up with them and their mistaken identities cause several hangups in their engagements.  The beginning of the film is hard to follow, the middle can be slow at times, but the ending is spectacular.  There were lots of clever twists and manipulations toward the end of the film.  The movie was comical bordering on silly even though it took place at the turn of the 20th century.  Overall, the movie was pleasant, but not my favorite.
It gets 3 out of 5 stars.

 

The Romantics (2010)

"The Romantics" looked like it could have been a light-hearted chick flick full of laughs.  Instead, it was a disturbing drama about a bunch of spoiled Yale grads who feel they can sleep around, do drugs, and ignore the meaning of marriage.  The movie stars Katie Holmes, Josh Duhamel, Elijah Wood, Candice Bergen, and Anna Paquin, but all their performances were duds.  The whole premise of the story is that Duhamel is going to marry Paquin, and Paquin has asked Holmes to be her maid of honor even though she stole her fiance from Holmes.  Throughout the film, I am appalled that Paquin's character would steal her college roommate's boyfriend, ask her to be the maid of honor at the wedding, and ignore the fact that her fiance is cheating on her with her roommate. In the film, other married couples decide to hook up with friends like it is no big deal.  This film might explain why the divorce rate is so high.  I found the film to be overly indulgent and depressing.  Don't watch it.  You will be disappointed.
It gets 2 ½ out of 5 stars.

 

Wet Hot American Summer (2001)

Entertainment Weekly had a feature article on the cult classic "Wet Hot American Summer" so I finally gave it a shot.  The movie had definite potential with a cast that includes Elizabeth Banks, Paul Rudd, Bradley Cooper, Christopher Meloni, David Hyde Pierce, Molly Shannon, Amy Poehler, and Janeane Garofalo.  However, the film didn't live up to its potential.  Paul Rudd had one of the best characters in the film as an irresponsible camp counselor who let campers drown because he was making out rather than acting as lifeguard.  Whenever he got caught, he'd take kids "out for pizza" and would toss them on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere so they couldn't tell.  I get that the film was supposed to be a spoof of 1980s camp films, but it fell flat many times.  I did laugh at loud at a couple scenes, but most of it was rather corny instead of funny.
It gets 2 ½ out of 5 stars.