That's My Dad.

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen - 

A dreadfully written, stiffly directed and poorly acted romantic comedy with a political subject manner as detailed as a pop-up children book, written for ages 3 and up. Serves as nothing more but Ewan McGregor porn (charm, not balls) for the respective fan-base. (4/10)

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Haywire -

Muffled from any synthetic action-cinema styles, Steven Soderbergh’s latest piece of art-house coolness, “Haywire,” is a revenge thriller more raw and bare boned than any ‘Bourne’ artifact could ever come close to. (8/10)

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An ode to unreliable narrators. 

I’ve always loved con artists. There’s a true appeal to the stylization of the simple art of lying and glamorizing its execution in film. I Love You, Phillip Morris is a snappy tale that refuses to deny that truth is, in fact, stranger than fiction. Based on a true story, we go deep into Steven Russell, a multi-faced and flawed con man embodied by Jim Carrey. Careful now, Carrey loves surprising his audiences with his stealthy variety in choice roles; this isn’t Liar Liar by a long-shot. Alongside is the love of his life, Phillip Morris, played by Ewan McGregor; whom he happens to meet in jail. Two brilliant performers progressively construct a dynamic together that brings this story home; it’s not just humor produced between the two of them, but some of the most vulnerable and sensitive performances seen from both Carrey and McGregor.

I Love You, Phillip Morris is a highly entertaining farce that plays with narrative style like matchsticks. It’s an endless streak of humor at work as we see Steven Russell constantly shift from one elaborate hoax to another faster than a chameleon on cocaine. This isn’t the super-hyper Jim Carrey mode, its fantastic pacing and direction at work that never drops the ball in the film. It’s refreshing to see the film take some of the weight for once and let Carrey act rather than him being the over-strained powerhouse of laughs.

McGregor’s role here grows to be rather under-rated, even within the film he doesn’t get the credit he deserves. While that fits the story, since I Love You, Phillip Morris is a rampant biography on Steven Russell, Phillip Morris ends up coming off as one of the most interesting motifs seen in a comedy. This is pitch-black humor, however, and McGregor fits his character and its given under-mined nature perfectly; creating this rather effeminate appeal to Morris that drives up the charm of their relationship and gives the film its necessary head check. 

Like many con artists searching for themselves, their hearts are in the right place and their persistence is unprecedented; that’s what I Love You, Phillip Morris is. An absolute treat loaded with funnier concepts than most works of fiction.

This film was my dad. 

When one is depressed, they create a criteria for themselves. The things that they only pay attention to in the ubiquitous space around them. It’s an unconventional habit, one that sparks their internal suppression of emotional pain. You feel special, you look for the things that you only notice and that makes you feel better. 

Beginners is the character study of a depressed man named Oliver. It’s a film I can only recommend for the Olivers in this world. 

The biggest challenges in life. Death. Starting over. Love. What do they mean? What do they feel and look like? Through a heart-wrenching and thoroughly sincere pair of eyes do we see these concepts and what they mean to Oliver. Ewan McGregor truly empties out his pockets, emotionally, and entirely sinks in the depression our generation is immersed within. His character spreads out his life’s pivotal emotional moments through a non-linear and cerebrally charged form of storytelling highly reminiscent of 1960’s french new wave films. It lets in the light on a soul through a very old-school, sweet manner. 

This is certainly one of the more subtle films I’ve ever seen, offering many strands of strikingly brilliant thoughts for those look for it; the depressed. It’s one of those films that nearly behave as a companion for its viewers at a certain focal point within their lifetimes. A father who’s come out of the closet after decades of marriage to a woman due to suppression from American society is now diagnosed with cancer. How to emotionally deal with those harrowing events in one’s lifespan. Oliver acts individually in his own story as he deals with the inspiration his father left him; the director’s approach keeps his tale very personal and strictly for the character itself. Yet as Oliver unravels before us, we are forced to ponder on ourselves and how we’ve developed into our own forms of depression. The ultimate question asked is, How have you become like this? 

Beginners is a highly personal film only to be secretly consumed and isn’t a product deemed to be exploited. It’s certainly one of the finest hidden gems I’ve had the pleasure to experience. Not for all, only the depressed or grieving. 

This film was my dad. An inspirational father whose on his deathbed.