Phoenix plays Leonard Kraditor, a troubled young Jew staying with his immigrant parents in Brighton Beach.  After his fiance left him a few years back due to genetic conflicts (seriously, they weren’t genetically compatible), he tried to commit suicide, and after a short hospital stay, he was left to the care of his parents Reuben (Moni Moshonov) and Ruth (Isabella Rossellini).  Life isn’t looking too great for Leonard.  Reuben is looking to sell his dry cleaning business to a chain, who’s owner happens to be the father of an innocent and sincere (and Jewish) looker (Vinessa Shaw).  The two fall into a comfortable relationship.  However, a chance meeting with his neighbor Michelle (Gwyneth Paltrow) raises doubts about how sure he is in his relationship.  Michelle is involved with a prominent New York lawyer who claims he’ll eventually leave his family for her, but it’s not looking too good for her either.

The film is seriously stylish.  Camera angles, fantastic shooting locales, perfectly paired background music give the story a feel that’s just right.  The dialogue isn’t particularly witty, but leaves plenty of room for realism that will haunt you in every relationship you have now, or ever.  Gwyneth Paltrow finally makes a good career move, moving away from those quirky girl roles she’s been stuck in like Running With Scissors.  Shaw is playing a minor role, but steals all the attention in the screen time she’s given.  It’s nice to see a pleasantly-aged Rossellini in a role that doesn’t involved her masturbating in front of Dennis Hopper.  The star of the show, however, is Joaquin, whose performance is pitch perfect in every aspect.

James Gray wrote and directed Two Lovers.  This is his first film since he wrote and directed 2007′s We Own the Night (yawn).  His competence is astounding, managing to force his viewers to emote whatever he wants, whenever he wants.  Despite the shitty title, the offensive reputation of the lead, and the likelihood you’ll have to venture into an art house theater, please, make the effort to see this, you won’t be disappointed.

3.5 out of 4 stars

Lula (Laura Dern) and Sailor (Nic Cage) are two reckless, young lovers, bent on spending their days doing the dirty and writhing around the dance floor at heavy metal rock concerts.  Lula’s insane mother Marietta (the completely disturbing Diane Ladd) can’t stand the thought of her innocent darling cohorting with trash like Sailor (I wouldn’t want my kids hanging around Cage either).  Don’t let this fool you into thinking Marietta doesn’t have her own skeletons in the closet.  She may or may not have had a hand in the death of her husband, Lula’s father, and undoubtedly has sent several hitman to kill Sailor.  After killing one of this hitmen, Sailor spends some time in prison.  Lula waits for him until he gets out, and they start a long road trip across the states towards California, coming across all sorts of lunatics, and trying to stay one step ahead of the Marietta’s men that are hot on their trail.

Like Blue Velvet, Wild at Heart is one stylish piece.  So much so, it could put even the best of Guy Ritchie’s movies to shame.  Lynch’s use of colors are so impressionable, the imagery sticks with you long after the credits start rolling.  Fire plays a central theme in the story and Lynch uses it to create strong motifs throughout (striking matches, lighting cigarettes, explosive car crashes, etc., etc.).  Lynch takes pride in the absurdity of his films.  Some of the scenes are so outrageous, you feel like you should be laughing, but social norms dictate you’re not allowed to find humor in such dark subject matter.  Perhaps this was Lynch’s purpose: to completely confuse his audience emotionally.

Lynch adapted the novel by the same name by Barry Gifford, and while the plot occasionally slows to an uncomfortable pace, the eye candy makes up for it.  Also different from Velvet (and I’m not sure to whom I should attribute this, Lynch or Gifford), the dialogue was rich, and interesting, similar to Tarantino’s style, who glories in the words of his film (truth be told, the plot shares a lot with 1993′s True Romance, which Tarantino penned).  The confidence in his directing demands your attention, as if you already owe that much to him for being a genius.  Lynch’s skill in creating dissonance in all things creates a vividly disturbing world; you’ll feel on edge the entire two hours.  As far as I can tell, the single mistake Lynch made while filming, was casting Nic Cage in the leading role.  Watching him try to keep up with Dern, and affecting a Elvis-esque accent and croon (and yes, he did do his own vocals) songs like ‘Love Me Tender,’ and ‘Love Me’ was almost insufferable.  If you can get past this (believe me, it takes some effort) and the violence and sexuality (sometimes mixed together), you’ll once again be impressed with this visionary’s work.

3 out of 4 stars

Rottentomatoes: 65% – Cream of the Crop: 38%

The story follows Jeffrey Beaumont (Kyle MacLachlan), a college student who’s returned from his studies to help out at his father’s hardware store after some sort of incident left the father in the hospital.  While walking to the hospital, he comes across a severed ear, which he turns into to detective John Williams.  Williams asks Jeffrey to keep this discovery on the down low, not to discuss it with anyone.  However, Williams’ daughter Sandy (Laura Dern) starts seeing Jeffrey, and the two decide to investigate the strange goings on.  This leads the two to the apartment of Dorothy Vallens (Isabella Rossellini), and introduces them to her very strange, and complicated situation.

The story, as proclaimed by critics old enough to criticize films in the mid 80s (this excludes me), is a visionary masterpiece about sexual awakening, about the the discovery of good and evil in each of us.  Lynch proves he is a master at his craft with this visually stunning piece.  The viewer is treated to lavish camera shots, incredibly powerful scenes, and subject matter that astounds.  The impressive part of this film is that as the Jeffrey and Sandy get deeper and deeper into things they just shouldn’t be involved in as carefree young adults, Lynch makes you feel their panic.  You too, will feel like you’ve gotten into something far over your head, and you’ll question your choice to watch Blue Velvet, as you quickly realize that you are not in control, that Lynch is calling all the shots.

Many argue that the film exploits Rossellini, as her part requires vast amounts of nudity, and puts her in humiliatingly compromising situations that seem to objectify women.  This is simply not true, and those that feel like they were voyeurs in Lynch’s devious story completely missed the point.  Blue Velvet forces you to think, to make your own conclusions.  While this is a turn off to many, to true cinophiles, this is what film is all about.  Leave your inhibitions at the door, and lose yourself in the glory of this piece.

4 out of 4 stars

Rottentomatoes: 90% – Cream of the Crop: Not enough reviews for a score