Seasons Greetings And Coming Attractions

Happy New Year from Film Babble Blog!

Ah, that's the stuff - pictured above is my favorite New Year's celebration movie scene of all time. From THE GODFATHER: PART II it shows Michael Corleone (Al Pacino), having just found out that his brother Fredo (John Cazale) betrayed him, gives him the kiss of death and tells him: "I know it was you Fredo. You broke my heart. You broke my heart!" What a way to enter in the New Year!

I just wanted to make a brief post to wish everyone a good 2008 and to plug some upcoming Film Babble.

Coming soon to this blog:

ATONEMENT (Dir. Joe Wright) This film opens Friday at my hometown theatre and I've been plowing through the so far excellent Ian McEwan novel so expect a review very shortly.

BEOWULF (Dir. Robert Zemeckis) I'm heading to the Imax Theatre in Raleigh tomorrow to see this ginormous 3-D retelling of the ancient Anglo Saxon epic poem that I was not a fan of back in high school English Literature class. I'll tell you know how it goes.

The Top Ten Movies Of 2007 - 2007 ended so why not make a list now? Well, you see, some major 2007 releases haven't made their way to my area (particularly THERE WILL BE BLOOD which won't be released here until Jan. 18th) so I will refrain from compiling a list until I'm allowed to catch up. Stay tuned because this being the best year for film in recent memory the list is sure to be a doozy!

More sooner than later...

JUNO what I'm talking about?

Since it opened on Christmas Day JUNO, Jason Reitman's comedic drama about a teenage girl who gets pregnant, has been trouncing WALK HARD at my hometown theatre (where I work part-time) with at most showtimes 3 times the audience in attendance. The critical response has been overwhelming - it has 94% rating on the Rotten Tomatometer and the most beloved and respected critic ever - Roger Ebert wrote that it's "just about the best movie of the year" and that he thought that star Ellen Page (who plays the title role) "will be one of the great actors of her time." Whoa! I thought it was a likable though derivatively quirky little film with good acting and some sharp lines but Ebert's swooning seems a bit much.

Of the minority that didn't care for what looks from a distance to be this year's LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE, one of the most interesting reviews came from Triangle critic Craig D. Lindsay. His review was entitled "Danger: Snarky Pregnant Teen Ahead" and he writes that JUNO "could very well be the most dangerous movie to come out this holiday season". Dangerous not for its possible pro-life agenda but for "its kooky, deceptive, ultimately mediocre charms". He goes on to say that if successful "it will inspire and influence a legion of teenage girls to start acting snotty and snarky, just like Juno, more than they already do."

So since Ebert adores Page, thinks Diablo Cody's first time screenplay is Oscar worthy, and ended up making JUNO his #1 film of the year while Lindsay considers the whole thing "snarky" I find myself toeing the middle ground. It is not in my eyes anywhere near the best movie of the year or is it a dangerous socially influential manifesto.

Greatly in its favor is that JUNO is very well cast - apart from Page we have J. K. Simmons and Allison Janey (The West Wing) as her parents, from the beloved yet short-lived Arrested Development - Michael Cera (also of SUPERBAD) as Juno's boyfriend and his fellow former cast member Jason Bateman. Bateman and Jennifer Garner play a suburban couple who sign on to be the baby's adoptive parents. How it all pans out was a little different than I expected and some of the exchanges are nicely witty:

Juno (Ellen Page): "Can't we kick it old school? Like Moses and the reeds?"

Mark (Jason Bateman): "Actually that would be kicking it old Testament."

None of JUNO will be surprising visually to moviegoers - it resembles most indie fare from THUMBSUCKER to ROCKET SCIENCE and its soundtrack won't shock either. Reitman should know that you don't use The Kinks (their song "A Well Respected Man" plays at one point) if you don't want to invite Wes Anderson comparisons but don't worry I won't make them. I feel after one viewing in the middle of the busy bustling season I may be blowing the film off so I may see it again and get back to you but for now -

Film Babble Verdict: JUNO is just alright.

More Later...

Male Manicure

Passed the times when women were evaluating men only after how clean his shoes are. The modern man should be not only elegantly dressed, but also well-attended. Furthermore, the visit to the cosmetologist of the stronger half of humanity has long ago ceased to be something extraordinary, and now the appearance of a well-dressed business man in a beauty salon brings no surprise.

Male manicure differs significantly from the female one, especially in the lack of paint apart. Men appreciate the natural look of nails after the procedure, so even manicure drugs are tailored to the characteristics of male hormonal system, and practically have no smell.

Deciding to have the manicure done, many men prefer to do it without interference of all sorts of prick-cutting things. And therefore they choose the European manicure, in which the cuticle removal is not made with scissors, but with the help of a special fluid applied on the cuticle, which moistures the skin and they are gently removed with the help of a wooden stick. After removing the cuticles, the manicure master will rectify the length and shape of the nails. Then he will file them and cover with a colorless varnish, which will protect the nails of friability. The varnish is barely noticeable on fingernails, but despite this, most men refuse to cover nails with anything, selecting the minimum needed procedures, basically - cuticle removal and correction of nails shape.

Lately the well-attended hands became an integral part of the image of a successful man. While everyone may not call themselves lovers of beauty salons, already many are beginning to understand that the care for their physical appearance is not only the destiny of the fair half of mankind.