Romantic seems to not accurately describe Midnight although it forwardly acknowledges in plot and in dialogue the disappointments of romanticism itself.  There’s a discussion (albeit one-sided) between two of Allen’s characters, played by Owen Wilson and Michael Sheen about an idea termed “golden age thinking,” a longing for a time outside of the present, where everything seems to have burned a little brighter.  For Wilson’s character Gil, this is 1920s Paris.

This discussion of nostalgia lays the foundation for the fantastical experiences Gil begins having as at the stroke of midnight each night as he’s wandering the streets of Paris alone, a car picks him up and transports him back to that time.  There he parties with Hemingway, has absurdist discussions with Salvador Dali, Gertrude Stein gives him notes on the novel he’s writing (a novel which itself is about nostalgia), and stops Zelda Fitzgerald from jealously throwing herself into the Seine.  But more importantly, he meets a lovely girl named Adrianna who seems to be approaching the end of her affair with Pablo Picasso.

If there was an ensemble cast to pay attention to, it’s here.  There’s no shortage of Oscar winners, including Kathy Bates as Gertrude Stein, Adrien Brody as Dali, and Marion Cotillard as the lovely Adrianna.  Watching other fine actors such as Alison Pill and Tom Hiddleston imitate these iconic and brilliant characters of history is endlessly charming.  The first lady of France, Carla Bruni, even makes an appearance.

As ridiculously sentimental and idyllic as it all sounds, Allen’s best move was not to take it too far.  Especially considering that there’s nothing deeper to this story than meets the eye.  Like Chehkov’s gun, the discussion of the faults of nostalgia in the first act gently rears its head in the film’s ending–the best ending Allen could have written for his film. But I won’t spoil anything.  Midnight in Paris is perfectly enchanting.

3.5 out of 4 stars

The world has changed considerably since Disney’s original TRON was released in 1982. So has it’s star, Jeff Bridges, you may know his character as Flynn. That didn’t stop the folks at Disney from attempting to graphically recreate a younger face for him, in the film’s sequel, titled TRON: Legacy. For most of the film, this younger face is on a character named Clu. Clu is a program made to run a digital world in some other dimension when Flynn, the creator of that world, can’t be there himself as he has to go back and forth between this reality, and that. But this young face is also used in the film’s opening scene, what is meant to be Flynn, many many years ago, telling a story to his young son. The camera weaves, and shadows are thrown, and we can’t get a good look at Flynn until right before the scene ends, when he steps into the light. And we finally see what a poor graphic it is, a reminder that technology isn’t quite there yet. It’s strange that first time director Joseph Kosinski choose to maneuver the scene in that way, considering the endless bounty of imagination, and jaw-dropping graphics to follow.

After this opening, the film jumps forward a number of years, and we’re introduced to a grown-up Sam, son of Flynn who went missing the night he told his son that story so many years ago. Sam, played by Garrett Hedlund, is clearly of the same intelligence of his father, as we witness him play a dangerous and hi-tech prank on the company his father created, and for which he still owns the majority of shares. Through a mysterious page (yes, a page, as in pager), he’s led back to his father’s arcade where he finds the equipment used to head to ‘the grid’ (the name of this digital world).  Accidentally, he’s zapped into the grid, and dropped in the middle of a society being tossed around by a Nazi-like regime. Sam is immediately forced to play a number of dangerous games to protect his life, and he is eventually saved by his father’s protege, Quorra (Olivia Wilde). Quorra, Sam, and Flynn reunited and set out to return back home through a rapidly closing portal back to reality, while at the same time, fending off Clu and TRON, who have turned against their creator, Flynn.

It’s all a bit confusing. Especially considering the fact Disney had 25 years to make sense of it all, or at least get a good grip on it before a sequel was churned out. Much less, for a sequel that means so much financially to the corporation. But unfortunately, the ideas tossed around in TRON: Legacy are as ridiculous and nonsensical as ever. It’s as if the filmmakers, Kosinski in particular, and the six people credited for story and screenplay decided to show all their cards.  Full transparency: the plot is flawed, and incongruous, terms and explanations are thrown around without making any real effort to help the audience make sense of what they’re seeing. But with these facts acknowledged, they were free to do whatever they pleased. And a lot of it is pretty damn cool.

The special effects are the star of the show, of course. And minus Flynn’s plastic doll face, they’re spectacular. The 3D is, at times, so efficient, you’ll forget you’re wearing those stupid glasses. The imagination and fantasy behind what you see on screen rival any in recent film history. Disney has created a world of there own, and it’s beautiful. Parts look like what the world would look like if Apple was given full artistic license to do what they please. The buildings and decorations frequently look like what Frank Lloyd Wright might have done, had he been a minimalist from the future.

With all this eye candy, there’s a score to accompany it by electonica team Daft Punk. It’s absolutely perfect for the feel of the movie, with deep bass, and soaring orchestral pieces when called for. I hope to see it mentioned come Oscar time. When it comes to acting, it’s clear that Mr. Bridges is doing all that he can (as he should just coming off an Oscar win), but he’s constrained by an incredibly flat script that feels like one of those YouTube compilation videos of horrible one-liners. Hedlund is similarly limited by the things he’s forced to say, and unfortunately, he’s the primary source of the distractingly bad dialog. It isn’t, of course, his fault. And at least he had more to do than his eventual love interest. It seems Ms. Wilde wasn’t asked to do much more than look good in a skin-tight body suit. And she does that very well. There are, however, some pleasing cameos to look out for.  These include Cillian Murphy, and Michael Sheen playing a flaming homosexual owner of a dance club

You’d think Disney would have allocated just a bit more of its rumored three hundred million dollar budget for a decent script. It’s disappointing. TRON is sure to make a ton of money. And since it, and films like Avatar are the bread and butter of studios, moviegoers are basically saying they don’t care about well written stories. However, the demographic that TRON: Legacy is primed for probably won’t care. And maybe you shouldn’t either. If you do see TRON: Legacy, leave your brain at home, and be ready to watch what boils down to a great dramatic Daft Punk music video.

1.5 out of 4 stars

So basically, there are humans, vampires and lycans (which apparently is the cool term now, as opposed to werewolves).  The vampires make the humans their bitches and make them pay to protect them from lycans and death dealers and other stuff you could probably find on the cards from Magic: The Gathering (but you probably knew all this stuff from the first two movies).  The vampires are pretty much in control and have made the lycans their slaves.  But then there was this special werewolf born that had a higher capability of thought, his name is Lucian (Sheen).  The lead vampire Viktor (Nighy) keeps Lucian around as a sort of pet.  What Viktor doesn’t know is his pet was banging his daughter, rebellious Sonja (Mitra).  Lucian isn’t satisfied with his life of slavery and plans an uprising of the lycans, but is torn because if he leaves the vampire kingdom, he’ll have to leave behind wicked hot Sonja.

it’s really quite the conundrum, right?  This is only Patrick Tatopoulos’ second attempt at directing, although he is quite the special effects and makeup guru.  According to IMDB.com, there are 9 people credited for the script, if you care to read all their names so you know who you should be angry with, click here.  Really, the script is an embarrassment to filmmakers everywhere.  But in lieu of dialogue, or interesting characters, they managed to throw in not one, but two brutal torture scenes (scenes that were clearly stolen from other, better films), some freaky crossbreed sex in unorthodox positions and a lot of colored eye contact lenses.  Unfortunately, Tatopoulos seemed like he had never been behind a camera before.  Battle scenes that were much wider in scope couldn’t be captured because of awkward camera angles and weird, almost non-existent lighting.  The extreme stylization of the film didn’t work for it either.  Besides bright purple and blue eyes, the only other color palate was dark gray.  And it gets boring.  Fast.  The cast did it’s best, and there are some thrilling moments watching Sheen and Nighy get into their roles, but even that couldn’t rouse much interest in this lousy excuse for a prequel.

1 out of 4 stars

For three years after being forced from office, Nixon (a mind blowing performance by Frank Langella who won a Tony for his portrayal of NIxon on Broadway) remained silent. But in summer 1977, the steely, cunning former commander-in-chief agreed to sit for one all-inclusive interview to confront the questions of his time in office and the Watergate scandal that ended his presidency. Nixon surprised everyone in selecting David Frost (Michael Sheen who couldn’t look more comfortable in the70s surroundings) as his televised confessor, intending to easily outfox the breezy British showman and secure a place in the hearts and minds of Americans. Likewise, Frost’s team harbored doubts about their boss’s ability to hold his own. But as cameras rolled, a charged battle of wits resulted. Would Nixon evade questions of his role in one of the nation’s greatest disgraces? Or would Frost confound critics and bravely demand accountability from the man who’d built a career out of stonewalling? Over the course of their encounter, each man would reveal his own insecurities, ego and reserves of dignity–ultimately setting aside posturing in a stunning display of unvarnished truth (imdb.com).

Howard comes back with this film after a completely disappointing The Da Vinci Code 2006 (and unfortunately, his next project is Dan Brown’s Angels & Demons).  While he can’t completely wipe out the bad taste left in my mouth from his last film, he does deserve all buzz this film is getting.  The acting is superb, truly, one of the best ensemble casts of 2008 (perhaps only beat by Van Sant’s Milk).  Howard deserves credit for keeping a Kevin Bacon who bit off more than he could chew in check, and off screen most of the time. A terrific script is provided by playwright Peter Morgan who adapted his own play for the screen.  If the subject matter wasn’t so subtle, this could be considered a revenge movie.  The tyrannical Nixon brought to his knees by the more humble layman.  Out of the nominees this year for Best Actor, Langella really should win, hands down, his potrayal of tricky Dick is astounding.  Even if the subject matter bores you, watch it for Langella.  In the same vein, the art direction should be praised as well.  Brian O’Hara and Gregory Van Horn (Wild Hogs… I know, right?) brought the 70s to life without putting too much focus on bell-bottoms and big hair.  The feel of the film is just right, and it takes a relatively boring subject and makes it larger-than-life-relevant.  It’s brilliant.

4 out of 4 stars