REVIEW: “MEEK’S CUTOFF” (2010)

January 24, 2012 by Keith Garlington

To call “Meek’s Cutoff” a unique film would be an understatement. It’s a historical western of sorts from director Kelly Reichardt that follows three families and their guide as they travel on the Oregon Trail. Reichardt certainly doesn’t romanticize the American frontier life, instead creating one of the most genuine portrayals of the hardships and struggles that faced the settlers in the new territory. But while the movie draws you in with it’s visual beauty, nice performances, and high stakes, it ultimately falls victim to its unsatisfying ending..

The film takes place in 1845 as the Tetherow, Gately, and White families follow the lead of Stephen Meek, a shaggy and rugged mountain-man hired to guide them over the Cascade Mountains. He claims to know a shortcut, but as the trip grows longer and the water starts running out, the families begin to question Meek. After running across a Native American and uncertain of his motives, they capture him much to the dismay of Meek who would rather just kill him. Eventually they’re faced with a dilemma. Do they continue to follow Meek who by all indications seems lost or do the follow the Native American who they can’t communicate with but may be able to lead them to some much needed water?

“Meek’s Cutoff” is an incredibly slow developing picture which is sure to turn off some people. It does require a good deal of patience, but it wasn’t long until I was thoroughly involved in the story. Reichardt does an incredible job giving the story an authentic look and feel. The cinematography is wonderful, and there some truly beautiful shots scattered throughout. There are also some solid performances particularly from Michelle Williams, Will Patton, and Paul Greenwood who completely loses himself in the Meek character.

But while it flirts with greatness, it ends up falling short mainly due to an ending that left me feeling frustrated and shortchanged. Now I have no problem with ambiguity, leaving things open for interpretation, or allowing the audience to come up with their own conclusions. But this ending is terribly abrupt and features nothing that would cause me to come to my own conclusion about anything. To be honest, it felt unfinished and I couldn’t help but feel letdown.

It’s tough to watch a picture that does so many things right but fails to stick its finish. It’s easy to talk about what all Reichardt accomplishes in her film. It’s a brilliant and arresting movie that had me sold right up to the very end. This one glaring black eye took so much away from my experience. I understand this was a creative decision and many people have been satisfied with it. But for me, not only did “Meek’s Cutoff” not offer any real conclusion, but it gave me nothing to build mine upon. It felt a little cheap and ultimately made a potentially great film just a good one.

VERDICT – 3 STARS

REVIEW: “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol”

January 24, 2012 by Keith Garlington

“Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” is the fourth installment in Tom Cruise’s action spy series and it’s also the best of the bunch. It’s a fast paced summer-styled popcorn picture that is perfectly constructed and moves from one big action set piece to another with an almost rhythmic and poetic flow. I wasn’t surprised that I liked the film. But I was surprised at how polished and effective this Mission Impossible movie was.

Director Brad Bird, best known for his Oscar winning work in animated films such as “The Incredibles” and “Ratatouille”, makes his live action debut and one of my biggest questions was how he would make the transition. Bird is to be commended for his handling of material that necessitates moving from location to location and not allowing the audience to spend too much time thinking about plot details. He melds together those fun elements from high octane action movies and clever spy pictures and the result is an energetic, globetrotting, gadget-filled piece of robust entertainment.

Tom Cruise returns as Ethan Hunt and he is in true movie star form. He and his team is framed for a terrorist attack on the Kremlin which leads the President to execute “Ghost Protocol”, the complete disavowing of the IMF. On their own and with limited resources, the team seeks to track down the individual responsible for the bombing, a dangerous mystery man who works under the name of “Cobalt” played beautifully by Michael Nyqvist. Cruise continues to be a perfect fit as Ethan Hunt and he’s certainly comfortable in the role. Simon Pegg returns as the team’s tech geek and comic relief and Paula Patton is a field agent with information on the bombing. But the best addition to the team is Jeremy Renner as William Brandt, and IMF analyst with a few secrets of his own. Renner gives a more reserved performance than what we have seen from him in films such as “The Hurt Locker” and “The Town”. This role required a bit more subtlety and Renner nails it.

The story moves all over the globe stopping at locations such as Moscow, Dubai, and India. The movie captures each location with energy and vibrancy and I was completely engaged. The action scenes are huge and sometimes jaw-dropping and Bird’s visual style makes it easy to overlook the sheer unbelievability of some of the sequences. The Dubai skyscraper scene alone is worth the ticket price. The gadgetry is as futuristic and outlandish as anything we’ve seen in the series but who cares? It works perfectly in this picture. I could go on and on but simply put, “Ghost Protocol” is technically flawless. Now just imagine it in IMAX.

As with the other Mission Impossible films, the plot does fall together a little too neatly and sometimes you just have to take things at face value. But the film moves along at such a fast pace that you’re never left to dwell on it. To be honest, I didn’t care that everything fell together so smoothly. I was having too much fun. Even at over two hours the film never lost me. “Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol” is getting a lot of critical praise even though it’s not the type of movie that would get awards buzz. But I judge a good movie by many things and one of them is how much fun I have watching it. Based on that, “Ghost Protocol” is surprisingly one of the better movies of 2011.

VERDICT – 4 STARS

“MONEYBALL” – 4 STARS

January 24, 2012 by Keith Garlington

I’m a sucker for a good baseball movie and “Moneyball” is a good baseball movie. But it’s not a traditional baseball movie. Based off of Michael Lewis’ book, “Moneyball” is the story of Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane and the team’s 2002 baseball season. In much the same way as “The Social Network” was a successful movie about Facebook, “Moneyball” takes sabermetrics, something that doesn’t seem like movie material, and creates a thoroughly engaging film around it.

At it’s core, “Moneyball” is a film about old versus new. It’s about winning or losing. It’s about adapting or dying. It’s a baseball movie but there is so much more going on underneath the surface. It’s an intelligent film that lives off of it’s clever and often witty script instead of the “stand up and cheer” moments that you usually get in sports movies. Another positive is that this isn’t a movie just for baseball fans. Obviously it will resonate with those familiar with the game but there is plenty of great character work to please anyone who appreciates good films.

This movie would never work without the strong performance from Brad Pitt. I’m certainly not the biggest Brad Pitt fan, but here he gives steady and somewhat restrained performance. He never overdoes it and his Billy Beane character feels natural and authentic. Pitt is hindered by a script that doesn’t allow for much emotion from the main character. With the exception of a couple of brief angry outbursts we rarely see what Billy is like inside. I would love to see Pitt flesh out this particular character a little more.

“Moneyball” may not sound like your cup of tea but there’s plenty to like here and it’s merits are hard to deny. Pitt shows that he is a solid actor and when he reigns in his performance he can deliver something memorable. He effortlessly handles the slick and polished dialogue while submerging himself into a character that’s thoroughly engaging. “Moneyball” is a fun and memorable experience that not only satisfies the baseball fan in me but also the fan of great storytelling.