Series and Movie Reviews
The real life story of Stan Herd comes to the big screen in EARTHWORK, an inspirational tale of an artist played by Academy Award nominee John Hawk (Winter's Bones).
Some say that artists have their head in the clouds but for Stan Herd that would be quite the advantage. A third generation Kansas farmer, Stan has pioneered a new art form known as representational crop art, or Earthwork.
Using the tools that he grew up with Stan began manipulating the earth to create pictures that can only be viewed from the air. Struggling for years to bring attention to his art Stan put in a bid to do an Earthwork project on a vacant lot in New York City owned by Donald Trump. Not wanting to lose the opportunity to another artist Stan Herd agreed to do the project for free using his own funds and putting his family in tremendous debt.
The film EARTHWORK chronicles this monumental undertaking and the emotional toll it took on his family. It also shows how the community was impacted by this ambitious project.
In the past year I’ve seen several movies that centered on non-traditional artists such as Wasteland and Exit Through The Gift Shop. But as great as these films are, by making Stan Herd’s story a dramatic film rather than a documentary you are able to experience his emotional journey as well as his artistic one. EARTHWORK not only documents John’s struggle, but it shows us the impact that his work had on the street people who squatted on the land and lived in the tunnels near-by. This is something that would not have been possible in a straightforward documentary. I believe that telling Stan’s story in this way was the best choice, and Oscar nominated actor John Hawkes is wonderful in the role.
When Stan produces his art he tills, rakes and plows the soil to create texture and then adds plants, rocks and other natural materials for color and shade. From the ground you cannot see the result, but from the air everything takes form. In the telling of this story we are right there with Stan in this vacant lot scratching and digging to achieve some distant goal. With every set back we feel his pain, and with every friend he makes we feel his humanity. But like the people of New York we have to wait until the end to see the final result. The reveal is breath taking and I am now very much a fan of his art. I hope one day to meet Stan Herd or better yet fly over his work.
What a phenomenal inspirational man he is and what a tremendous awe-inspiring concept. I highly recommend this film.
Melanie Wilson
Vvisit her blog at LAMelbox.blogspot.com
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Don't let the name fool you. BRIDESMAIDS is not a chick flick about a wedding. Instead it's a woman's version of a bromance and a counterpart to The Hangover.
Chris Hemsworth, the God of Thunder from the land down under, proves himself a worthy Marvel comic book hero in THOR.
The Marvel comic book comes to life on the big screen in THOR starring a relative newcomer from Australia alongside Academy Award-winners Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman. However, it isn't the Oscar winners who stand out in THOR.
In the fantastical realm of Asgard, Thor, the soon to be king, wields his hammer with great arrogance. He is powerful but immature. When he disobeys his father, King Odin (Hopkins) and attacks their enemy, Odin casts out the God of Thunder to live among the humans on Earth, stripping him of his powers. When he lands on Earth, he doesn't realize he is now like the humans - just an average Joe.
Meanwhile back on Asgard, his supportive brother Loki begs his father to bring back Thor, that is until he discovers a dark secret kept from him by his father. On Earth, Thor is helped by scientist Jane Foster (Natalie Portman) and her mentor (Stellan Skarsgard), but one of them doesn't believe his story.
Photo Gallery: THOR Movie Stills
Aussie Chris Hemsworth certainly looks the part of a Nordic god with his God-like stature and brawny physique. At first a bearded super hero seemed far-fetched but Chris Hemsworth wears it well. He plays the arrogance over the top, but it works well in the story especially when he arrives on Earth proclaiming his status as a god. Those are some of the funniest moments on screen. When Thor realizes his errors of his way, you sort of miss that arrogance about him and he becomes in a way dull. Imagine Tony Stark losing some of that selfishness - boring.
Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman lacked chemistry as a potential love interest. Neither actor really clicked with each other. It may not have been helped by the weak women roles. Natalie Portman's dialogue often times seemed cheesy and too giddy for a character that's supposed to be a scientist. She's no Scully.
Movie Clip: Thor Stripped of Powers
The stronger relationships in THOR are between father and his two sons. Tom Hiddleston as Loki is a welcome departure as the low-key villain of the film. While Chris Hemsworth played the arrogance over the top, Tom was very subtle in his acting. And you believe Anthony Hopkins is this all-powerful god.
The father/son drama plays out throughout the film and eventually that is what holds the film together. The dramatic porton of the film clearly has actor/director Kenneth Branaugh's stamp all over it. As a thespian, Branaugh brings that Greek tragedy feel to the action movie. Once the story leaves Asgard, we lose some of that with the human characters who aren't as interesting or dynamic.
Once the action takes place on Earth, the tone is more humorous with a handful of laugh out loud one-liners. Iron Man set that tone and it carries on in this Marvel adaptation which is appropriate given these superheroes will come together in The Avengers.
THOR looked great on the IMAX 3D screen but it didn't add too much more of a viewing experience than watching it on a 2D screen.
THOR is no Iron Man but the film is quite entertaining although silly at times but a little of both never hurt anyone.
And as usual, stay until the end credits for a bonus scene.
THOR is in movie theaters May 6, 2011.
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Orlando Bloom, Juliette Lewis, and Laura Linney come together in first-time director Mark Ruffalo's noteworthy debut -- "Sympathy for Delicious."
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Every February, children all across the United States learn about Abraham Lincoln as a man who fought against slavery and kept the country together during the Civil War. But that is usually the extent of most people's knowledge and most are unaware of what he meant to the country at the time. That’s why Robert Redford's film The Conspirator is so important.
WATER FOR ELEPHANTS may seem like a sappy love story but the adaptation based on Sara Gruen's novel, proves to be much more.
The film starts in modern times with Hal Holbrook recounting his days in the circus as a young man during the depression era. He flashes back to his young days as the young Jacob played by Robert Pattinson, a veterinarian student who loses his parents, and runs away joining the circus.
Interview: Robert Pattinson Wins Over Female Co-Star With Candy
Inglourious Basterd's Christopher Waltz is August Benzini, the bipolar circus ringmaster in the Benzini Bros. Circus who hires Jacob as the circus veterinarian. Jacob becomes infatuated with August's wife Marlena, the beautiful circus star played by a platinum blonde Reese Witherspoon. When Marlena's horse, the main circus act, must be put out of its misery, August purchases Rosie, an elephant. Rosie bonds the Marlena and Jacob in their love for the animal. After witnessing August's abusive behavior towards Marlena and the circus animals, Jacob wants to rescue Marlena from his clutches.
Movie Clip: An Elephant Flirts With Robert Pattinson In Water for Elephants
Initially, there is not much chemistry between Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon but as the story progresses you start to believe the mutual attraction. While the love story binds the plot together, it's the circus elements and August's character that brings together the film. Oscar winner Christopher Waltz again takes on the role of the villain but in WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, his character has moments of sympathy. His bipolar characteristics make his character the most interesting of the cast.
Movie Stills: Robert Pattinson, Reese Witherspoon in Water For Elephants
Robert Pattinson gives a different kind of performance in this dramatic period piece. The Twilight star rarely flashes a smile on screen, and in WATER FOR ELEPHANTS, we get to see a lighter side from Robert with the occasional laughter and his pearly whites. Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon gives another good performance as a flirty and sexy circus mistress. Rarely do we see her sexy side in her girl next door roles but here the circus outfits and beautiful dresses make Reese a goddess. Her circus act on the elephant was quite impressive, even more so when you find out she did all her stunts with her massive co-star.
The production quality is suberb and the depression era makes for an interesting backdrop for the love story. Director Frances Lawrence put together an entertaining and dramtic film that could've easily gone for a harlequin-style romance but it didn't.
HANNA is a return to good old-fashioned action movie with strong characters and an original storyline that entertains from start to finish. 
Monogamy, starring Parks & Recreation's Rashida Jones and Chris Messina, focuses on how our bodies always tell the truth. Our words may say one thing, while our faces, eyes and body language may say another. The problem is we don’t always know why, so reading into things may get us into trouble. This film is about truth, lies and photography. It is also about communication and what makes a couple work. It is a fascinating character study and brings up some interesting ideas. How much do we really know about each other?
A wedding photographer who makes just enough to get by, creates a second job in order to make more money. He has always been fascinated by the real stories that pictures tell by the studying the background, body language and expressions of the subjects in them. His new business, called Gumshoot, is a service where people contract him to photograph them in public places without his presence being known. The idea is to see what you look like in candid moments, to see yourself in your own environment and how others in that environment react to you.
Theo’s (Chris Messina) new business is picking up, and as he and his live-in girlfriend get ready for their own impending wedding, Theo begins to fixate over other people’s wedding photos and how they relate to each other. He is looking for that certain something that shows when a couple is truly in love. Meanwhile, Nat (Rashinda Jones) is having her own fixations. She begins reading into everything that Theo does.
In his Gumshoot business, clients contact Theo via the Internet with a time and place to meet and what they are wearing. Theo will then photograph them in secret and process a series of proof sheets. Next they will meet in person and Theo will help the subject pick their best photos and point out things that the background says about them. When a new client contacts him, Subgirl (Meital Dohan) shocks Theo by doing some very private things in very public places.
This bold, daring blonde mystifies Theo. While entranced in her photographic shots, Nat walks in behind him and he blushes. Nat knew about the shoot upfront, but neither she nor Theo knew that the subject would be so titillating. Both try to be cool, but seeds of doubt arise. Nat wonders why Theo is so obsessed with this woman and Theo wonders why Nat keeps pulling away.
Melanie Wilson
Visit her blog at LAMelbox.blogspot.com
A little pot smoking alien voiced by Seth Rogen sounds like a silly concept for PAUL but the British comedians behind Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, once again provide a fun movie-going experience with a whole lot of laughs.
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost bring their brand of comedy to America with PAUL, a film written by the comedy duo. This time around, the Brits pay homage to the science fiction genre with references from every possible movie made about aliens including classics such as Star Wars, Aliens, Close Encounters, and E.T. The brains behind Shaun of the Dead take themselves out of jolly old England and take it to the western part of the United States for a hilarious send-up of an alien on the lamb.
Graeme (Pegg) and Clive (Frost) are two English science fiction fans visiting Comic Con in San Diego for the first time. Once they make their nerd rounds at the comic book convention, Graeme and Clive are off in a RV adventure across Nevada to visit Area 51 and UFO sighting locations. While on the road, they encounter Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen), a space alien who has escaped Area 51, who needs their help taking him to location where a space ship will return him home.
Justin Bateman is the man in black chasing the fugitives across the desert with the help of the always hilarious Bill Hader from Saturday Night Live and character player Joe Lo Truglia (Superbad, Role Models). Another SNL player Kristen Wiig comes along for the ride as a woman kidnapped by the alien and his human friends. Blythe Danner (Meet The Parents), Jane Lynch (Glee), Sigourney Weaver (Aliens, Avatar), David Koechner (Anchorman, Get Smart), Jeffrey Tambor and even Steven Spielberg make brief but hilarious cameos in PAUL.
At first you would think Seth Rogen's voice of Paul might annoy your senses but Seth managed to hold back his usual tone to give Paul a unique voice. However, the pot smoking, party animal mentality of Paul seemed to fit right in with Rogen's personality from Pineapple Express...without the whining.
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost made a very smart choice with this project by changing the setting to America and surrounding themselves with American comedians. The casting looks like they invaded SNL and a Will Farrell or Steve Carell comedy.
As with Frost and Pegg's two previous films, PAUL pays homage to classic genre films with some great one-liners borrowed from other movies. Even if you are not a science fiction movie buff, you'll enjoy the film but you will certainly feel left out when the audience go crazy over the references.
The funniest and boldest part of the movie which might offend Sarah Palin and Christians is the banter over religion and science. Frost and Pegg, obviously, have strong opinions over the subject matter as they dedicated some funny lines to discounting the Christian beliefs... all in good fun of course. Another group which could find offense with the characterization is the Geeks themselves. However, Pegg and Frost, self-admitted nerds themselves, respectfully portrayed science fiction fans without being overly critical and joking at their expense...except for the running gag over being gay buddies. Nerds will be proud.
Thankfully, the American setting In PAUL didn't take away from the British wit we enjoyed in Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz but they certainly injected it with humor Americans can appreciate. The story is simple and the laughs are plenty with a clever script and fantastic characters.
The CGI work on Paul looked great and added to the illusion that he was real in that reality. The end sequence, however, didn't impress with a certain object (won't give it away), looking rather low-budget but all was forgiven because of the final pay-off.
PAUL was so much fun watching, that a repeat viewing is in order. A definite must see.