Oh The Wrestler...

The Wrestler(dir. Darren Aronofsky)
Maybe I spoke too soon when I declared this would probably be my favorite film of the year and if I learned anything from last year(and this year as well) is that you can't judge a film by its trailer. So when this movie turned out to be a disappointment, it was perhaps unsurprising. The film's major problem outside of Aronofsky's intentional downsizing his role, at least visibly, is the script. The characters outside of Randy are pretty much cardboard cutouts including his moody and bitchy estranged daughter played by Evan Rachel Wood almost too well and Marisa Tomei's stripper with a heart of gold. Even Randy is something of a joke with the script constantly positing him as something of a saint that wears spandex with young children and essentially everybody involved in the wrestling district being enraptured with him along with his disinterest in T&A during his repeated strip bar visits(he's just there to drinkkk man). Since he's such a great guy, we're supposed to feel really bad when he has to work behind a deli counter instead of being involved in wrestling events where he gets stapled and torn the hell up by barbed wire. Also, all the drama that is generated within the film comes across as a screenwriter's hollow attempts at drama as we're treated to a predetermined fucked subplot with his estranged daughter that I'd immediately write off if it didn't contain one of the best moments of the film and some relationship drama due to Marisa Tomei's character's policy of not dating customers. The crucial heart attack itself is also something of a plot contrivance. Mickey Rourke can be disarmingly sweet throughout the film and I'd understand the praise he's been receiving if he was given some better material.
** out of ****

Oh Boarding Gate...

Boarding Gate(dir. Olivier Assayas)
Review pending...
** out of ****

Oh The Diving Bell and the Butterfly...

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly(dir. Julian Schnabel)
REVIEW PENDING...
**1/2 out of ****

Oh Grace is Gone...

Grace is Gone(dir. IDK IDC)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh Throw Down...

Throw Down(dir. Johnnie To)
REVIEW PENDING...
*** out of ****

Oh Cassandra's Dream...

Cassandra's Dream(dir. Woody Allen)
REVIEW PENDING...
*1/2 out of ****

Oh National Treasure 2...

National Treasure 2: Book of Secrets(dir. IDK IDC)
REVIEW PENDING...
*1/2 out of ****

Oh Lions for Lambs...

Lions for Lambs(dir. Robert Redford)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh My Blueberry Nights...

My Blueberry Nights(dir. Wong Kar-Wai)
REVIEW PENDING...
**1/2 out of ****

Oh Starting Out in the Evening...

Starting Out in the Evening(dir. IDK IDC)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh The Great Debaters...

The Great Debaters(dir. Denzel Washington)
REVIEW PENDING...
** or **1/2 out of ****

Oh 27 Dresses...

27 Dresses(dir. IDK IDC)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull...

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull(dir. Steven Spielberg)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh Fulltime Killer...

Fulltime Killer(dir. Johnnie To and Wa Kai Fai?)
REVIEW PENDING...
*** out of ****

Oh The Tracey Fragments...

The Tracey Fragments(dir. Bruce MacDonald?)
REVIEW PENDING...
**1/2 out of ****

Oh Cloverfield...

Cloverfield(dir. Matt Reeves?)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh The Savages...

The Savages(dir. Tamara Jenkins)
REVIEW PENDING...
*1/2 out of ****

Oh Lars and the Real Girl...

Lars and the Real Girl(dir. Craig Gillespie)
REVIEW PENDING...
**1/2 out of ****

Oh 21 Grams...

21 Grams(dir. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu)
REVIEW PENDING...
** out of ****

Oh Traffic...

Traffic(dir. Steven Soderbergh)
REVIEW PENDING...
**1/2 out of ****