09/01/03 - The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Life is like a box of buttons; you never know what you're going to get out of its suprisingly unremarkable plot and characters. For a 3 hour movie of mostly good scenes, it's pretty weird how nothing much is going on. Lots of stuff almost happens and doesn't. Dozens of ideas are set up and none are paid off. It feels like it was a 5 hour movie that had all the interesting parts removed. 6/10
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08/12/14 - Frost/Nixon
Kind of a "lite" version of The Insider. Very compelling. Though instead of being about personal integrity and The Greater Good like The Insider, it's about a couple of self-serving screwups...though one is on a much grander scale with a much greater intellect. It's a great matchup in unexpected ways. 8/10
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08/12/04 - Milk
Gus Van Sant knows what he's doing. The weight of this one comes from the characterizations and the true story. Well crafted and deeply interesting, even if it's a little too hollywood at times. Makes me want to see the actual documentary about Harvey Milk. 8/10
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08/11/26 - Slumdog Millionaire
Danny Boyle does his version of a Bollywood movie. What an awesome hybrid. What a great portrait of India. And it's great fun for any audience, funny and dramatic, kinetic, great-looking, great music... 9/10