Into the Woods: The Perils of Happily Ever After

After watching Into the Woods, I have been humming the songs non-stop. Given the twisty deviousness of Stephen Sondheim's lyrics, I am as yet incapable of actually singing the songs, but that will be my New Year's resolution. I downloaded the entire soundtrack and I believe if you just listened to it, you would barely miss a beat of the plot. The entire movie consists of talk-singing and is simply one of the most splendid spectacles you could witness in a theater this winter.

Into the Woods features an all-star cast, who, unlike the cast of Annie, are actually all good singers. The only disappointment in the bunch is Johnny Depp, in a woefully misguided bit of stunt casting as The Wolf. Thankfully, he only has one song before he is quickly dispatched. James Corden and Emily Blunt are unsurprisingly delightful as the Baker and his wife, the childless pair who have to set off on a scavenger hunt to retrieve items for the Witch (Meryl Streep) who lives next door. The items they seek will be found in the woods, where they will run into four well-known fairy tale characters: Cinderella (a simply marvelous Anna Kendrick, who is proving that her Tony nomination at the age of 12 was no fluke); Jack, of Jack and the Beanstalk fame (Daniel Huttlestone); Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford), and Rapunzel (MacKenzie Mauzy).

Every actor is bringing their A game (the young ones are particularly talented, singing effortlessly and giving the veterans a run for their money) and they throw a wealth of expression into every song, bringing out humor and gravitas, fear and romance, and every emotion in between. I was going to enumerate which of the songs stood out in particular for me, but quickly realized I was just going to name all of them. There is such a variety of emotion and skill on display, from the hilariously hammed-up rendition of "Agony" by Chris Pine and Billy Magnussen as the two ridiculous Princes in love with Cinderella and Rapunzel, to the heartwrenching "Stay With Me" by Meryl Streep, who just knocks it out of the park. Each song is a mini-story in its own right, and even if this wasn't the most tightly-plotted tale I've ever seen, I wouldn't care because I could just listen to those songs all day.

The first act of Into the Woods is a fairly traditional telling of these fairy tales, where every character gets their happy ending. But Act 2 follows up on what happens after "Happily Ever After" and becomes a truly grim affair. I've never seen the stage version, but having read a plot summary, the movie is certainly somewhat Disney-fied: there are fewer deaths, certain narrative devices have been dropped for the sake of cinematic clarity, and several songs were cut for time. And yet, screenwriter James Lapine, who wrote the book for the original musical, has done a beautiful job of translating this tale to screen and bringing it to a wider audience. Director Rob Marshall, the man responsible for the modern revival of movie musicals, is the ideal person to wrangle together this enormous cast and tell this larger-than-life story. The costumes are wonderful, the special effects are grand, the cast is perfect, the music is impeccable, and the woods are spectacular, alternately imbuing the movie with darkness and light as the plot demands.

Into the Woods is a beloved musical and this cinematic adaptation is a triumphant showcase of the genius of Stephen Sondheim's music and lyrics. The settings and visuals are sumptuous, adding a dimension that you can't get from a simple stage production. This is a lovingly and cleverly crafted piece of art: you could wish for nothing else. 

The Interview: A Competent Comic Caper

I'm not sure if posting a review of The Interview will single me out for a North Korean hack. And yet, having watched this movie, I fail to understand what all the fuss was about. This is a perfectly run-of-the-mill Seth Rogen/James Franco comedy. Goofy, filthy, funny, and dumb. Yes, Kim Jong-Un is a character, but he isn't even vilified as he should be: he just comes off as a somewhat childish despot, who likes listening to Katy Perry and drinking margaritas. Hardly cause for political uproar.

Franco plays Dave Skylark, host of a celebrity talk show, and Rogen plays his producer, Aaron, who starts to wish they could cover more meaningful news. Upon discovering that Kim Jong-un (played by Randall Park) is a big fan of Skylark Tonight, he decides to score an interview with the North Korean dictator. The North Koreans agree, but then CIA Agent Lacey (the delightful Lizzy Caplan) arrives and asks Dave and Aaron to assist in the assassination of Kim Jong-un. Cue lots of jokes about American interference and past CIA mistakes. As much as the movie talks about the brutal North Korean regime, it pays equal attention to America's political atrocities at home and abroad and serves up some meaningful political commentary. All of which is largely buried under sophomoric humor and over-the-top histrionics, of course.

The plot is pretty basic and doesn't offer up many surprises. It is a fairly funny movie, but the satire is mostly generic and bland, nothing biting or truly insightful. The soundtrack is probably what entertained me the most, an energetic wall of pop and hip-hop that kept me going even if the plot was flagging. All of the actors are perfectly fun and likable (yes even the ones playing North Koreans) and apart from your typical Hollywood Asian stereotyping and casual racism, this is a largely inoffensive movie that would have been funny but ultimately forgettable.

The marketing department for The Interview couldn't have created this much hype if they'd tried. Despite being pulled from major theater chains, a lot more people will probably watch this movie now than if it had received a traditional theatrical release. In the film, Kim Jong-un insists on writing the script for his interview and portraying his dictatorship in the nicest light possible. The cyber attacks inspired by The Interview only show up North Korea's own ridiculousness when attempting to censor their critics, and this movie's commentary on media and politics has taken on a meta life of it's own. So if you're curious, head on over to YouTube and rent The Interview. It isn't the funniest thing you'll watch this year, but it has certainly turned into a political statement. Or something. 

Annie: It's the Hard Knock 21st Century Life

Right off the bat, I will confess that I have merely fast forwarded my way through the 1982 film adaptation of Annie and have absolutely nothing invested in the musical or its characters. I know the famous songs, but not all their lyrics, and apart from knowing that Annie is a red-headed orphan girl who is adopted by the rich Daddy Warbucks and ends up living happily ever after, I am largely oblivious about the plot. Therefore, I rather enjoyed the breezy 2014 Annie update starring Quvenzhane Wallis, but if you're a musical purist, this may not be the movie for you.

In this remake, Annie is an African-American girl who lives in a foster home in Harlem. The home is run by the drunk Mrs. Hannigan (Cameron Diaz) who fosters these girls for some cash and treats them fairly abominably. One day, Annie accidentally runs into Will Stacks (Jamie Foxx) a billionaire businessman who has decided to run for mayor of New York City. His numbers are flagging in the polls but his association with Annie gives him an instant boost in popularity. His PR team suggests he invite Annie over for lunch, but Annie, who is no fool, suggests that he would be even better off if he became her temporary guardian. Stacks is no fan of kids, but pressured by his team, he reluctantly agrees, and Annie moves into his home and, of course, eventually into his heart.

For a musical, Annie pays shockingly little attention to the music. It opens with rousing renditions of "Maybe," "Tomorrow," and a wonderfully choreographed "It's the Hard Knock Life" with all the young girls, but the music mostly takes a backseat for the rest of the film. Which is a good thing, because unless Wallis is singing, you really don't want to hear any of thees songs. None of these actors have been hired for their singing ability and while Wallis is talented and belts our a tune like nobody's business, the adult actors are an autotuned nightmare. The songs would be foot-tappingly good if they weren't sung so terribly, so I for one am glad that the songs petered out as the movie progressed.

Annie is a perfectly serviceable piece of holiday entertainment that will keep you occupied for two hours. It is well-paced, energetic, and rests squarely on the very capable shoulders of a talented young actress. The plot is predictable, but there are some twists and turns to keep you engaged. As long as you have nothing too invested in the history of this musical, you will be charmed by this film.

PK: Solid Satire

Aamir Khan does one movie a year, and that movie will be a doozy. PK is no exception. The marketing for this movie was spectacular - the filmmakers didn't give away one iota of plot, which is crucial for your enjoyment. I went in knowing absolutely nothing and everything that unfolded on screen was a sheer revelation. I can't discuss my opinion of the film without giving away the entire plot and theme so please stop reading right now if you plan on watching PK: you need to watch it first and then come back to read this review.

The opening scenes establish the weirdest part of the film, i.e. that the title character, PK (Aamir Khan), is actually an alien who arrives on Earth to do some reconnaissance on its inhabitants. However, he ends up stranded in our world when he is robbed of the device that can summon his spaceship to take him back home. He stumbles around Rajasthan and Delhi, asking people to help him, and in fatalistic Indian fashion, everyone he meets shakes their head and says, "What can I do? Only God can help you." Being a literal-minded alien, PK therefore sets off on a quest to find this mysterious God who is going to help him get back home.

Written by Abhijat Joshi and director Rajkumar Hirani, PK is wonderfully well-scripted and witty, insightful and edgy. At the beginning it pokes fun at humanity as a whole and the strange customs and rituals we observe that would bewilder any alien who lives by logic and reason. However, it quickly turns into a very specific satire on religion and its purveyors. PK teams up with a TV reporter, Jaggu (Anushka Sharma), and the two of them decide to take down Tapasvi Maharaj (Saurabh Shukla), a religious guru who claims to have a direct line to God and proffers useless advice to his millions of followers. PK doesn't understand the concept of deception (no one is capable of lying on his planet) so he thinks Tapasvi has just gotten his lines crossed and is "dialing a wrong number" to get to God. Jaggu is fully aware that Tapasvi is a fraud, but she simply lets PK argue with his alien logic and creates a massive expose that attacks not just Tapasvi but the general irrationality and strife caused by religious fervor.

This is a fairly explosive topic to broach in India, which is why Rajkumar Hirani is the only director who could do it without getting a fatwa issued on his head. The movie is so funny that most audience members will probably think it's a hilarious comedy and basically ignore the serious truth at the movie's core. The more activist members of the audience will immediately begin a "Wrong Number" campaign as portrayed in the movie, and all of India will be buzzing with that for a few months until Shahrukh Khan comes out with a new movie and everyone forgets about PK. Already, some people are protesting about the movie and claiming it portrays some religions in a more negative light, which shows how they've completely missed the point anyway. In fact, my biggest problem with PK is that it still insists on a God - it says religion is a man-made construct with silly rules, but it doesn't doubt that God exists. Hirani is a wildly clever director, and the reason for his success largely derives from his populism. He knows that attacking religion is a dicey proposition already; acknowledging atheism would just be one step too far. India is a country that is still largely incapable of viewing morality and religion as mutually exclusive constructs, so for now, we shall have to be satisfied with the stand taken by PK.

Just a few words about the technical aspects of the movie. The songs are lively and colorful - nothing extraordinary but certainly enough to keep the momentum going. The cinematography by C. K. Muraleedharan is vivid and wonderful. The acting is excellent: Aamir Khan is a sheer delight (as always) and manages to be funny and heartbreaking all at once. Anushka Sharma is a perfect counterpart and brings the necessary worldliness and intelligence to counter PK's naivete. Boman Irani has a reliably fun and engaging turn as Jaggu's boss at the TV station, while Sanjay Dutt is equally delightful as a Rajasthani man that PK runs into during his travels. All told, PK is a technically impeccable film.

Bollywood has trouble crafting comedies and PK does go slightly over the top towards the end in its desire to hammer the message home on the unsuspecting masses. Just in case you weren't aware, religion inspires terrorism and other awful things - big surprise. There's also an unnecessary romantic angle, and a very predictable romantic subplot with Jaggu and a man she met in Bruges that is charming but ultimately pointless. However, barring my quibbles with the script, which starts to mix too many genres and simply does not go far enough for my liking in terms of the religious commentary, PK is a perfect movie. After all, it wasn't made for me, it was made for the wider Indian populace, and judging by their reception of it, it's at least provoking some kind of meaningful dialogue. That is, until the next big blockbuster is released. 

Mr. Turner: An Artistic Triumph

Timothy Spall has been picking up numerous awards for his performance as 19th-century English painter JMW Turner. Writer-director Mike Leigh has similarly received widespread kudos for this remarkable film. However, come February, the one person I really hope wins an Oscar for Mr. Turner is cinematographer Dick Pope.

Watching Mr. Turner is like spending two and half hours in an art museum. There are beautiful paintings on display in the movie, but each frame of the film feels like a painting itself. There are multiple scenes where at first you think you're looking at some artwork but then suddenly a cloud scuds by or a wave ripples across the water and you realize that you're just looking at a gorgeous landscape captured through a cinematographer's extremely skilled lens. 

The movie follows the latter years of Turner's life. He is an odd man with incredible talent but a disastrous personal life. He lives with his beloved father and doting housekeeper, painting up a storm and lording it over less successful painters at the Royal Academy. He is one of those rare artists who is relatively well-appreciated in his lifetime (a young John Ruskin shows up as one of Turner's fervent admirers) and he doesn't seem to be a dreadfully tortured soul. 

Over the course of the movie, Turner goes through some personal upheavals and unwelcome criticism of his techniques and artistry. By and large, this is not a movie that chronicles anything extraordinary and dramatic about his personal life. It is really a mood piece that completely steeps you in the period. The dialogue is spot-on and while there are dramatic moments, I was mostly impressed by the quieter scenes, like when a group of well-bred people sit around discussing gooseberries for lack of a less contentious topic. It is a meticulously observed world, both visually and psychologically, and it is one of the year's most remarkable cinematic feats. 

Mr. Turner fully deserves all the critical acclaim and it will certainly be in contention for several awards in the coming months. Timothy Spall turns in a pitch-perfect performance (after all, the man spent two years learning how to paint just for this movie) but the true star is the breathtaking cinematography. In this age of 3D spectacle and green screen, it is wondrous to behold such natural beauty captured on film. I'm sure each scene underwent a great deal of filtering and color grading to achieve exactly the right look: the filmmakers have put as much artistry into making this movie as JMW Turner put into his paintings. The result is a true masterpiece that will dazzle you in the cinema and then encourage you to head to a museum.

Hector and the Search for Happiness: Keep Looking

My friend and I went to see Hector and the Search for Happiness because AMC was giving away free tickets. Free tickets were exactly how we discovered the marvelous Begin Again, so we turned up at the theater with reasonably optimistic expectations. Sadly, you can't win 'em all.

The movie tells the story of Hector (Simon Pegg), a psychiatrist who is fed up of hearing about his patients' middle-class woes and is sick of his dull, routine-obsessed existence. He lives with his long-time girlfriend Clara (Rosamund Pike), who ensures Hector's life is always worry-free and running according to schedule. Hector decides he needs a change and announces he is going on a global research trip to find out how people in different countries find happiness. Clara is not pleased about this sudden decision, but agrees that Hector needs to do whatever he can to feel fulfilled again. 

What follows is a very strange movie that goes from Shanghai to Africa (yes, I believe no country was specified, it was just vaguely Africa) to Los Angeles. Hector meets many people (some more stereotypical than others) and asks them how they define happiness. Answers vary tremendously and he writes them all down in his diary as "research." The movie's tone veers wildly from absurdist humor to weepy drama and it all feels weird and manipulative and rather poorly thought out. It is based on a French novel by Francois Lelord, so one can only suppose that either something got lost in translation or this is one of those books that should never have been turned into a movie. 

I will say, I've never seen Simon Pegg in a dramatic role and he acquits himself remarkably well in this film. Despite the ridiculousness of the plot and general incredulity I felt throughout, I had no trouble empathizing with Hector and getting a bit swayed by his emotions. Similarly, Rosamund Pike does a valiant job to make Clara less of a nagging ice queen and more of a loving partner. The cameos by various well-known actors throughout the movie are much more hit and miss. In the end, it seems like the director, Peter Chelsom, slapped together a stew of movie with whatever odds and ends he could find in the hope that the result would be something palatable. He did not succeed.

Hector and the Search for Happiness is a remarkably ambitious movie but it fails spectacularly. It cannot figure out what it wants to say or how to say it, and the ultimate resolution feels entirely too tame and conventional for what has been such a deeply unconventional movie. It feels like one of the sketches that would air at 12:50 on Saturday Night Live; if it genuinely hung on to that absurdist streak, it might have been successful enough to gain a cult following. However, its mawkish and ultimately predictable storytelling is a letdown that doesn't deliver any happiness at all.

The Comeback: Nine Years Later

After nine long years, Valerie Cherish is back on our screens. The TV gods have answered our prayers.

Back in 2005, Lisa Kudrow starred in thirteen episodes of The Comeback on HBO. The show followed sitcom actress Valerie Cherish who was trying to revive her flagging career by filming a behind-the-scenes "reality" show about her life while she embarked on a new role playing Aunt Sassy in a broad network sitcom. It's a lot of shows within shows, and it's complicated to explain but fascinating to watch. 

The first season was a superlative example of cringe comedy. Valerie would routinely suffer humiliation at the hands of her younger co-stars, bemused camera crew, and horrific writer Paulie G. (Lance Barber), who did everything he could to debase her on the sitcom and in everyday life. The second season picks up nine years later: Valerie has had a failed stint on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, flirted with Botox, done some independent student films and is generally getting by. When she finds out that Paulie G. is out of rehab for his heroin addiction and has sold a show to HBO that sounds suspiciously like his life story as a writer on a sitcom starring a lady named "Mallory Church," she gets sucked back into the drama. 

The second season is filled with just as much cringe-inducing comedy as the first and most of the original cast are back. It also features new characters, including Seth Rogen in a very endearing role as Valerie's new co-star. Paulie G. might be off heroin but his relationship with Val is just as fraught as ever. Valerie is sweet and clueless, desperate for fame and insecure about aging in Hollywood. Her patient husband Mark (Damian Young) is still tolerating her craziness, even after production invades his house when the show's budget gets slashed. It is shocking to think that this show hasn't been on the air for nine years because they haven't missed a beat. 

The Comeback is alternately hilarious and awkward, sweet and awful, a perfect send-up of fame, Hollywood, and actorly desperation. Lisa Kudrow is a wonder to behold; she turns Valerie into a sort of female Michael Scott who does really stupid things and yet remains a likable character that the audience will earnestly root for. So tune in to The Comeback's triumphant return, and discover if Valerie's finally going to make her dreams come true.

Supermensch: The Most Interesting Man in the World

Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon is a documentary about one of the most interesting men you've never heard of. Correction: you've never heard of him if you're a regular person like me, but if you're a celebrity, he's probably your best friend. Here's a man who accidentally became Alice Cooper's manager at the age of 21 and helped launch multiple musical acts into stardom, produced independent movies that won awards at Cannes, created the whole concept of "celebrity chefs," and brewed yak tea for the Dalai Lama in his spare time. The Dos Equis guy has nothing on him.

The movie is directed by Mike Myers, who first met Shep on the set of Wayne's World. Shep helped Myers through a particular difficult time in his life (as is his wont) and the two became fast friends. Having spent so much time with Shep, Myers knew he wanted to make a movie filled with this man's crazy stories and the result is Supermensch. Featuring tales from the man himself as well as assorted celebrities and family members, the movie is a lighthearted and bewildering romp through one man's rather brilliant life.

In keeping with Shep's personality, the movie focuses on the positive and breezes past the more uncomfortable bits of his life. While Gordon seems like a genuinely lovely and caring person, some of his early tales contain excessive references to drugs, booze, and women to seem totally kosher. At one point, he refers to how he would struggle to make sure underage girls weren't caught in the vicinity of his clients, as that would make for terrible publicity. When Myers asks off-camera, "And because that would be wrong, right?" Shep laughs and says, "Oh yeah, it would be wrong too." It's a tad too casual to be comforting. Certainly, it seems like Shep's early career was fueled by ambition and the pursuit of success at all costs. He minted money and platinum records, but his personal life took a toll, and as he saw his friends dropping dead or checking into rehab, he decided it was time for a change.

This is heavy stuff, yet the tone of the movie always remains strangely upbeat, and it's difficult not to get swept up in the charm and warmth of the man. Now a Jewish Buddhist who is an excellent cook with a house in Maui that is the nexus of some of the most epic celebrity dinners of all time, Shep Gordon is clearly living a wonderful life. The only thing missing is a wife and kids, and everyone interviewed in the movie casually says how they hope Shep will settle down soon and have a baby. I would think you ought to have some qualms about hoping a nearly 70-year-old man would father a child, but Shep Gordon is capable of just about anything and who knows where the next chapter of his life will lead.

Mike Myers has collated some excellent archival footage and evocative music, and re-enacted Shep's stories in ingenious ways that make the movie very entertaining to watch. Rather than just listening to Shep tell his stories, you get to experience them vividly on screen, with all the highlighted absurdity. In 84 minutes, I was presented with a unique life that I loved learning about but would never want to emulate. So watch Supermensch and catch a glimpse of how the other half lives and what you have (not) been missing. 

Mockingjay - Part 1: The Fight for Freedom

When I first read The Hunger Games, I was obsessed. I couldn't stop reading the books until I was all done. Then I saw the first movie, and loved it. I re-read the books with just as much enthusiasm and watched the second movie, which I adored as well. And now I've just watched The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1. No surprise, I loved it too.

The movie picks up in the underground bunkers of District 13. Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) is trying to process her rescue from the arena of the 75th Hunger Games and deal with the guilt of leaving Peeta behind. Alma Coin (Julianne Moore), the President of 13, is trying to figure out if this traumatized girl really is capable of being the spokesperson of the revolution to overthrow the Capitol, a view only enthusiastically being espoused by Plutarch Heavensbee (Philip Seymour Hoffman). Gale (Liam Hemsworth) is turning into a soldier, invested in the fight and eager to obtain retribution for the destruction of District 12. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, go read the books or watch the previous movies, because this is a sequel that has zero interest in recapping events for you and making sure you're caught up.

This movie is jam-packed with action, emotion, and high-stakes drama. There are some brief moments of levity (mostly through Elizabeth Banks' wonderful performance as the ridiculous Effie Trinket), but this is a tale that is true to its dark and dystopian roots. Lawrence's performance is powerful as always, capturing every nuance of Katniss' fear, anger, and bravery as she reluctantly agrees to become the Mockingjay and lead the rebellion. Her conflicted feelings for Gale and Peeta are explored carefully, and despite the many action sequences and epic set pieces, there are also moments of quiet reflection and haunting beauty that remind you of what these people are fighting for. Always a sucker for soundtracks, I have to say the most affecting moment for me was when Katniss sings "The Hanging Tree," which is filmed and turned into a propaganda video, subsequently becoming a rebel anthem. It's a moving and powerful sequence that brilliantly distills the mood of the novels and the complex narrative.

Director Francis Lawrence has a real knack for these movies and he knows how to pace them perfectly. The action is always punctuated with plot and moments of stillness, and while you are swept away in the narrative, you are never overwhelmed. Screenwriters Peter Craig and Danny Strong have done a fantastic job of adapting Suzanne Collins' work and it is very clear that the decision to split the story into two parts was the right one. A lot happens in the novel, and it would have been crazy to pack that all into one movie. By splitting the story into two parts, we get to fully experience the world of the novel and the heart-stopping events that will lead to the ultimate battle against the Capitol. The cliffhanger is perfectly frustrating, and even though I know what's going to happen next, I still can't wait to see it all unfold.

The Hunger Games is a truly great franchise, and Mockingjay - Part 1 is an excellent addition. While I am desperate to see Part 2, I am also sad that this means it's all almost over. But then again, I'll just re-read the novels and re-watch these movies for many years to come. 

Transparent: Groundbreaking Television

Transparent is Amazon's first big foray into the arena of prestige programming. They dropped all ten episodes of the show's first season (it has unsurprisingly been renewed for a second) in September and the rave reviews kept pouring in. I'm late to the party but finally binge watched my way through the show last week and can add my praise to the flood.

The show tells the story of Mort (Jeffrey Tambor), a seventy-year-old man who has decided to finally take the plunge and come out to his family as a woman. That is the last time I will be using masculine pronouns to describe her. Maura (that's her new name) is terrified to come out to her three grown children, who are all hideously self-obsessed human beings in their own special way. There's the eldest daughter, Sarah (Amy Landecker), who has two young kids with her husband, but is grossly dissatisfied with her stay-at-home lifestyle and is seeking to rekindle a romance with a former flame. The middle son, Josh (Jay Duplass), is a successful music producer but a fairly horrible and entitled person. The youngest daughter, Ali (Gaby Hoffmann), is smart but aimless, hitting her father up for money with no real life plans and ambition. The remaining member of the family is Shelly (Judith Light), Maura's ex-wife (they have been divorced for several years at this point), who is very Jewish and loud and equally fed up of her unhelpful children.

The series is brimming with plot - while Maura's coming out and transition to full time womanhood is obviously central to the show, her ex-wife and kids also have a lot going on in their own personal lives. At times, it seems like Maura might be the only stable one in her family, as she at least has decided to accept her true self and take control of her life. Tambor does an exceptional job playing Maura. His performance is so quiet and reserved, yet he is imbuing that character with years of frustrated femininity, fear, and finally acceptance. The show contains many flashbacks that give us some insight into Maura's early struggles to find a place for herself. It is an eye-opening and beautifully constructed look into the evolution of the LGBT community and the strange politics and rules within that world that manage to make Maura feel as unwelcome there as she does in the heterosexual sphere. 

The other actors are all doing tremendous work as well. Landecker, Hoffmann, and Duplass keep straddling the line between likability and loathing, portraying three very human siblings who are extremely flawed but still care for each other and their parents in some twisted fashion. There are plenty of guest actors you will recognize from other shows (Rob Heubel, Melora Hardin, Bradley Whitford, to name a few), who are doing things you've never seen them do before, and doing it spectacularly. Of course, ultimate credit is due to the show's creator, Jill Soloway, who wrote the show as a way of processing her own father's coming out as trans. Each episode is a thoughtful, empathetic portrayal of the trans community, LGBT issues, and general family dynamics. Some moments are farcical and hilarious, some are deeply moving and sad, others are odd and thought-provoking. But it is never dull, and is a constantly surprising piece of television that challenges you to assume you know where things are going and then takes you somewhere else.

Transparent is a sprawling, messy, dramatic comedy filled with moments of hilarity, profoundness, and just plain weirdness. It contains brilliantly-realized characters, who all have deeply complicated and nuanced relationships with each other. It is challenging and absorbing, heartbreaking and funny, and simply lovely. You've never seen anything like it before, so watch it right away.

St. Vincent: Sweet & Savvy

All I knew about St. Vincent is that it starred Bill Murray and Melissa McCarthy. That was enough for me. Now that I've watched it, I can recommend it not only for its cast, but for the funny and moving story by writer-director Theodore Melfi. He tells a familiar story but tells it so well that you could just keep watching it forever.

The story is fairly simple. Vincent MacKenna (Bill Murray) is a cranky old man who doesn't like people and isn't much liked in return. He is fond of gambling and drinking, pays a pregnant Russian prostitute (Naomi Watts) for her services once a week, and is heavily in debt. One day, Maggie Bronstein (Melissa McCarthy) moves in next door with her 12-year old son Oliver (Jaeden Lieberher). She is getting over a nasty divorce and is dealing with the chaos of single motherhood, while Oliver quietly takes it all in his stride. He is a remarkably self-possessed child, but after being bullied at his new school and arriving at his house without his keys, he is forced to seek refuge at his cranky neighbor's house. Vincent, desperate for cash, reluctantly agrees to become Oliver's babysitter, and proceeds to teach him some questionable life lessons, including how to break someone's nose and gamble all your money on a horse racing trifecta.

Murray and McCarthy are two of the greatest comedians to grace our screens and they both do a spectacular job in this movie. I don't know how much of the dialogue was improvised and how much of it was already included in Melfi's original script, but the humor is sarcastic, witty, and fantastic. Chris O'Dowd also plays a small but insanely memorable role as Oliver's teacher, Brother Geraghty (it's a Catholic school), who is resigned to the fact that his pupils are a bunch of heathens but he is going to teach them about morning prayers anyway. Naomi Watts is charming as Daka, the "lady of the night" who seems like a one-note character but gradually develops into a surprisingly funny and warm woman. And Jordan Lieberher is one of those child actors who is destined to become a star. He is utterly wonderful as the polite, capable Oliver, watching in resigned bewilderment as the adults around him proceed to screw up their lives in every way possible.

While the movie starts off as a raucous comedy, the second half gets more dramatic, as Vincent undergoes some huge life changes, alienates his friends, and seems to return to his old ways. Oliver and Maggie have to face some challenges themselves, and things look a little bleak. However, the movie ends with a beautiful flourish that teeters on the edge of treacly sentimentality but is saved by Murray's no-nonsense acting. He doesn't chew the scenery in the dramatic moments, letting them play out naturally without getting too mawkish. Likewise with Melissa McCarthy, who is sympathetic throughout but never demands your pity. The proceedings are enough to bring a tear to your eye but not make you feel too manipulated, the Goldilocks zone of a great comedy-drama.

St. Vincent is a movie that you can predict all the way through: the story of a grumpy old man and a young boy becoming unlikely friends is one that we've all seen before. What makes it unique is the stellar cast, who can make you laugh uncontrollably one moment and then tear up the next. The characters are unlikely and bizarre, which makes it all the more fascinating to see how they all fit together and become a support system. It may be a tale as old as time, but it is a beautifully told tale, and will gladden your heart. 

Rosewater: A Profound Revolution

Some days, I feel incredibly fortunate to be a New Yorker. My oft-mentioned brilliant friend, Laura, alerted me to a special preview screening of Rosewater at the AMC Lincoln Square theater on Thursday. The screening would be followed by a live stream of a Q&A session between Stephen Colbert, Maziar Bahari, and Jon Stewart that was being broadcast across the country in multiple movie theaters. However, much to my shock and delight, since I was attending the Lincoln Square screening, I had unwittingly stumbled upon the location where Stewart, Colbert, and Bahari were physically present to conduct the Q&A. It was a wonderful event that fully conveyed the intelligence and earnestness of all parties involved in making this movie. But enough about that - you're hear to read about the movie.

Rosewater is the true story of Iranian-Canadian journalist Maziar Bahari (played by Gael Garcia Bernal), who went to Iran in 2009 to cover the presidential elections. These were the elections that sparked the Green Revolution that took Twitter by storm and brought the world's attention to the fact that Iran was full of educated, disenfranchised youth who wanted to have a say in their country's future and were being denied that opportunity. Bahari was caught in this political maelstrom and summarily arrested and placed in solitary confinement at Evin Prison, under accusations of being a spy for the Western media and charged with fomenting the revolution. His nameless interrogator (played by Kim Bodnia) played a clip of an interview Bahari had done for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. This satirical news segment was used as evidence that he was talking to American spies, further highlighting the dangerous absurdity of his situation, and ultimately leading to the reason why Jon Stewart got involved in this project.

Since Bahari wrote a book about his experience that Jon Stewart has turned into a film, we all know this story ends with him ultimately getting out of prison. But the story of how he got there, and his desperate attempts to cling to his sanity and some semblance of hope as he spent 118 days in solitary confinement is what makes Rosewater such a powerful and moving film. The movie rests squarely on the shoulders of Gael Garcia Bernal, who delivers a simply astonishing performance. His face is a flickering canvas of emotion and there are multiple scenes where he has to go from laughter to despair, from hope to anger, and convey impossible nuances of human emotion, all while wearing a blindfold. Kim Bodnia is equally effective as his ruthless but foolish interrogator, a man who is just trying to get his job done so he can get home to his wife and stop thinking about torturing people for a few hours. It's such an absurd and terrible situation, and despite the immense darkness of the story, Stewart deftly weaves in plenty of humor that allows you to decompress from the horrors of this stifling imprisonment.

This film is an impressive directorial debut and I greatly look forward to seeing what Jon Stewart comes up with next. The movie is not a polished affair - there certainly are times when the camera is too shaky, or montages are done a bit too cleverly to demonstrate technical proficiency at the expense of simple artistry. But all of the core elements of excellent storytelling, superb acting, and evocative cinematography and music are there. The background score by Howard Shore is wonderful, but the occasional blasts of Iranian hip hop are even more vibrant and exciting, challenging you to alter your perceptions of this society and recognize that it is filled with so much more diversity and animation than you would ever imagine from watching cable news stories.

Rosewater captures the beauty of Iranian society along with its ugliness, and this is a movie that has multiple tales to tell. It is a movie about the dangers faced by journalists in the field along with their responsibility to brandish their cameras and tell the world about what they see. It is a movie about an oppressive regime and the clamoring idealists who love their country and demand change. It is a movie about psychological torture and unlawful imprisonment. It is the story of the members of Bahari's family, a group of brave souls who all fought in their own way to change the status quo and paid dearly for it. And with its final shot, Rosewater is the story of the triumph of the human spirit, that refuses to be cowed, will laugh in the face of horror, and remain defiant in the quest for justice. 

Interstellar: Trippy Science & Storytelling

Christopher Nolan makes complicated movies. Movies about space tend to be complicated. So when Christopher Nolan makes a movie about space, you get Interstellar, a trippy glimpse into the future that features some intriguing pseudoscience, a superb cast, gorgeous visuals, and laughable dialogue. It's a movie I liked, but did not love, one that has promising ideas, but falls a bit flat on execution.

Interstellar begins a few generations into the future, when the people of Earth have completely outstripped their resources through war, pollution, and greed. Matthew McConaughey plays Cooper, a widowed former NASA test pilot who was forced to become a farmer because the world needed more food instead of astronauts. He lives on a farm with his two young children and father-in-law, where apart from the fancy technology, their living conditions resemble scenes from Ken Burns' The Dust Bowl. His ten-year old daughter, Murphy (a precocious and delightful actress by the name of Mackenzie Foy), is extremely bright but keeps talking about a ghost in her room that is trying to send her messages. Disbelieving at first, Cooper eventually realizes there are in fact hidden messages contained in the poltergeisty happenings in his daughter's room. He deciphers them and stumbles upon a secret NASA program whose mission is to travel into other solar systems, by means of a mysterious wormhole that has appeared near Saturn. They are trying to find Earth-like planets that can sustain human life before the human race is driven to extinction: quite an ambitious goal. The program is headed by Cooper's former mentor,  Professor Brand (the reliable Michael Caine), and Cooper is convinced to set off into space with three other astronauts, including Brand's daughter, Amelia (Anne Hathaway). Space adventures ensue.

Interstellar is visually stunning but not revolutionary. Apart from a breathtaking sequence through the wormhole and an (apparently) scientifically accurate depiction of a spinning black hole, space looks pretty much the same as it always has in the movies. The robots depicted in the movie are wonderful, initially seeming rather unexciting and then slowly revealing just how much they are capable of. The alien planets that the astronauts land on are not exceptionally mesmerizing and look like they've just stepped into a remote corner of Iceland. The plot is really what needs to keeps the movie moving, and by and large it does. Interstellar is almost three hours long, and I was never bored. There's a lot of head-scratching discussion about relativity, which I'm sure would either delight or infuriate physicists, and much debate about gravity, quantum mechanics, and other high-level topics that I never understood in college and don't comprehend now. While that talk is dumbed down to make some semblance of sense to the audience, the more annoying aspect of the dialogue is the hazy philosophic rambling courtesy of McConaughey and Hathaway that resembles an episode of True Detective. It's unfortunate that McConaughey has become synonymous with that kind of nonsensical speechifying, and while Interstellar is not chock-full of such moments, there are enough to get a trifle wearisome.

The movie does pack some emotional punch, with a heartbreaking arc between Cooper and his children as he disappears into space and has to miss their entire childhood. There is also a fantastic cameo, which the marketing department has done a hell of job keeping secret, and which certainly piqued my interest right when my attention was flagging. There are plenty of twists, moments of exceptional courage and horrific betrayal, and most thankfully, a complete resolution. The one thing I appreciate in a Christopher Nolan film is that you do get a satisfying conclusion. There might be a sense that more is left to accomplish offscreen, but the characters have successfully followed a story arc and most loose ends have been tied up. Interstellar may have very weird and bizarre themes, but it resolves them with a neat ending that leaves you with only a few unanswered questions that you can then fiercely debate with your friends. 

Interstellar is not Nolan's best movie, but it is still a decent film. Space is always a worthy subject for film, and Nolan's deft use of imagery and sound to alternately blast your eyes and ears with novelty and then abandon you in the dark vast quiet of space is an amazing cinematic experience. The all-star cast does what it can with a serviceable story but strained dialogue, and there's much to like and dislike. For me, the things I liked outweighed the annoyances, and ultimately I enjoyed Interstellar. Depending on your cinematic tastes and scientific background, you may or may not agree.

Yes Please: Amy Poehler's Life Lessons

My brilliant friend Laura (who knows my pop culture tastes so well) bought me a copy of Amy Poehler's memoir, Yes Please. It arrived on my doorstep last week and just the fact that it opens with a picture of Poehler's Kindergarten report card was an indication that I would love this book. I quickly devoured it, savoring every story and piece of advice from this funny, feisty, and fabulous woman.

Yes Please is not a traditional memoir that starts from her birth and ends with her present. Instead, it's an eclectic hodgepodge of remembrances, essays, childhood stories, grown-up advice, silly poems, inane acrostics, and even guest essays from Amy's friends, who contributed some stories so she would have less writing to do. Poehler is very upfront of the sheer pain of writing a book - it was not a task that came easy and appears to have been executed in stolen moments of sheer exhaustion. Yet she has crafted a combination of tales that made me laugh out loud, gave me a lump in my throat, or just made me stop and think for a bit. 

Together with Tina Fey's Bossypants, and Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Yes Please completes the trilogy of memoirs by my most-adored TV comediennes. Amy Poehler's book did make me more contemplative than the others - there are some sadder tales mixed in, as well as much more unapologetic feminist rhetoric that reminded me of Fey and Poehler's iconic Weekend Update segment about how "Bitches get stuff done." The backstage stories about Saturday Night Live and Parks and Recreation are fantastic, and her long history of improv with Second City and UCB is equally impressive. She has done some wonderful things and it's enlightening to read about the behind-the-scenes experiences that formed the woman we all watch on our screens today. 

In Yes Please, Poehler comes off as a fearless, BS-intolerant woman with a fierce work ethic and full awareness of her strengths and weaknesses. She understands how privileged she is as a blonde white lady in America, yet she still shares some universal truths about being an ambitious working woman and proffers solid advice about how to be happier with yourself and your life. So pick up a copy of her book, start flipping through the pages, and learn how to embrace the Poehler motto of, "Yes Please."

As You Wish: Behind the Scenes of The Princess Bride

The Princess Bride is an enduring classic, a movie that spans the generations and continues to entertain kids and adults of all ages today. It has been 27 years since the movie was released, but the movie's fans are still devoted to it, flocking to special screenings a la The Rocky Horror Picture Show, having Westley and Buttercup themed weddings, and endlessly quoting the movie's eminently quotable lines. Therefore, As You Wish, Cary Elwes' memoir (co-written with Joe Layden) about the filming of The Princess Bride, is a welcome addition to any fan's bookshelf.

The book takes us all the way from Elwes' initial casting to the end of filming and subsequent reception of the movie. Despite a good critical reception and ardent support from the people who managed to see it in theaters, the film only made a modest $30 million at the box office and seemed destined for obscurity. However, as VHS technology became more widespread, the movie quickly became a family favorite and a cult classic; 25 years later, the cast were assembled at Lincoln Center for a screening and Q&A to talk about the movie's enduring popularity.

The book mostly recounts Elwes' memories of the shoot and the impressive cast and crew, but it is peppered with remembrances from the other actors, director Rob Reiner, and writer William Goldman. I highly recommend that you have the movie on hand when you read this book: there are certain scenes alluded to that you will want to re-watch now that you have the behind-the-scenes scoop of what was really going on. This by no means a scandalous memoir; by all accounts, The Princess Bride was a joyful movie to make, led by a mensch of a director, featuring a tight-knit and extremely collegial cast, a hardworking, tea-break-enjoying British crew, and an anxious but brilliant screenwriter who was entrusting his most beloved script to people who wanted to do justice to his imagination. Right after I read this book, I felt compelled to read Goldman's original 1973 novel, a brilliant fairytale that set this whole juggernaut into motion.

The tone of As You Wish can get a bit saccharine at times, but ultimately, what can you expect for a movie that is so sweet and beloved as The Princess Bride? While many of the stories recounted in the book were familiar to me from the fantastic Entertainment Weekly oral history that was published a few years ago, it is still wonderful to have a compilation of these tales in one book. The dust jacket also contains a limited edition Shepard Fairey poster, so fans can adorn both their walls and their bookshelves. The Man in Black might believe that you have to get used to disappointment, but if you're a fan of the movie, this memoir is everything you could wish for. 

Chef: A Dull Dish

Chef is food porn masquerading as a movie. If you like multiple scenes of food being lovingly prepared or are very keen on learning how food trucks operate, this is the movie for you. If not, there really isn't a whole lot left for you to sink your teeth into.

Jon Favreau stars as Carl Casper, a burnt-out chef who gets fired after he engages in a Twitter war with a food critic who gave him an abysmal review. His ex-wife, Inez (Sophia Vergara), thinks he needs inspiration and urges him to try running a food truck. Carl eventually gives in and his young son, who desperately wants to spend more time with him, also gets to help out and bond with his dad. Along the way, they make a lot of sandwiches and travel to foodie capitals of America like New Orleans, Austin, and Miami. 

It's a pretty predictable tale and the ending is a particularly gift-wrapped affair, tied up with a neat bow and offering full resolution for all characters. As such it is a perfect family movie for those relatives in your life who like their films to be uncomplicated and delicious-looking. The soundtrack is full of fun evocative Latin music and jazz, and the cast is chock-full of famous faces like John Leguizamo, Scarlett Johansson, and Dustin Hoffman, just to name a few. It's like Favreau recognized the need to throw in occasional cameos to liven up the film and prevent it from turning into a two hour food and travel documentary. 

Chef is a simple film with no real ambition. It's a perfectly acceptable movie but doesn't have a lot going for it apart from several montages of food preparation and a serviceable cast that don't have much to do. It has an inane R rating for language, nothing else, so you should feel free to watch it at your next family gathering, get hungry, and then forget about it. 

Belle: Battling Law & Propriety

Belle was released in May, which is not an ideal time for a period drama that deals with the question of the slave trade in 1700s Britain. But if you missed it in theaters, it might now be worth your while to seek it out.

Belle tells the story of Dido Elizabeth Belle, a mixed-race woman who is raised by her English aunt and uncle after her mother dies in the West Indies and her father, an English Naval captain, brings her home to his relatives. Her father freely gives her his name and exhorts his relations to take care of her as they would any legitimate daughter. Dido is played wonderfully by Gugu Mbatha-Raw, who does everything she can to bring this quiet but expressive character to life. Initially, Dido seems satisfied with the the status quo, but as she grows older, the unfairness of her position in society and the differing standards in the way she and her white cousin Elizabeth (Sarah Gadon) are raised start to wear on her. Race is of course the foremost theme, but Dido also questions the limitations placed on her due to being a woman. Despite being white, her penniless cousin still suffers in her quest to find a husband who can support her, while Dido is courted by a "suitable" man who is mostly interested in the independent fortune left to her by her father. 

Things change after Dido meets John Davinier (Sam Reid), an idealistic young man who hopes to be a lawyer. He is studying under her uncle, William Murray (Tom Wilkinson), who happens to be the Lord Chief Justice of England. Murray has to deliberate on a very important ruling regarding the drowning of slaves on a slave ship, and his decision could impact the future of slavery across the British Empire. While he strives to be impartial and legal about it, Dido and John appeal to his emotions and emphasize the need to view this as a deeply moral and ethical issue. 

Belle is a beautifully made movie with a very predictable plot. It seems like a Jane Austen novel, complete with unsuitable suitors, spinster aunts, and questions of propriety. However, it is based on a true story - Dido Belle was a real woman who was raised by William Murray, and while the movie has to imagine the events of her life, it presents a very compelling tale. The power of the movie lies in the few scenes where images or actions speak louder than words: Dido beating her chest and scrubbing her skin as though she can tear the troublesome blackness off her; her fear of having a portrait painted of her and her cousin gradually explained by viewing the portraits around her that always position the black subjects in inferior positions to the white ones; her delight when she finally meets a black maid who can teach her how to comb her hair. 

Belle is an important history lesson couched in palatable Hollywood storytelling. It features a wonderful performance from Mbatha-Raw, and is a decent introduction to slavery from the British perspective, when we are far more used to hearing the American version. It serves as a stepping stone to learning more about the real-life events that inspired the abolitionist movements of the 18th and 19th centuries and offers a tantalizing look at how one woman may have altered the course of history.

The Thousand Dollar Tan Line: Veronica Mars Keeps Going

This has been a terrific year to be a Veronica Mars fan. If it wasn't enough that the cast and creator were able to give us the Veronica Mars movie after a successful Kickstarter campaign, Rob Thomas proceeded to also write a novel featuring our beloved blonde detective. I devoured my copy of The Thousand Dollar Tan Line last weekend and was thoroughly entertained.

The book picks up exactly where the movie left off, so you should watch the film before embarking on the novel if you don't want to be blindsided by any of the numerous changes in Veronica's life. It features a spring break mystery; a girl who has been partying hard in Neptune disappears and Veronica is hired to help with the case since the local Sheriff's department is proving to be massively incompetent as usual. Another girl disappears, which would be bad enough if it wasn't for the fact that Veronica is connected to her in a way that makes her investigation even more complicated. I trust that's intriguing and vague enough to pique your interest. 

The regular cast of characters are all back and reading this novel genuinely feels like you're just watching an episode of the show. Rob Thomas and co-author Jennifer Graham know these characters inside and out and you can picture them perfectly in your head as you follow their twisted exploits. The beauty of novelization is that it gives fans more access to the character's inner monologues. We always had Veronica's voiceover to give us an insight into her thought processes but now we get a richer understanding of her friends and family and just what makes them tick. It's like a brilliant piece of fan fiction, except that it's written by the guy who created these characters in the first place so it's completely credible and amazing. 

Veronica Mars was a great show, then became a great movie, and now has been turned into a great novel. The Thousand Dollar Tan Line is just the first in a series and I am fully looking forward to subsequent novels. This book is a well-written potboiler mystery that has twists and turns, cliffhangers and red herrings galore. It's not highbrow literature but it is hugely satisfying to read and fully in keeping with the Veronica Mars legacy. If fans can't see her on screen, we'll happily settle for seeing her on our bookshelves. 

How to Train Your Dragon 2: Another Animated Treat

If 22 Jump Street was a good example of how to make a self-deprecating comedy sequel, How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a great example of how to make a sequel to a hit animated franchise. Developing old characters, throwing in some very interesting new ones, playing with dramatic conflicts while tossing in jokes, and wrapping everything up neatly in 2 hours. Who could resist?

The story picks up five years after the first movie. The Viking villagers of Berk are huge fans of dragons now, using them in every aspect of their daily lives, and happily co-existing with the previously feared creatures. Our hero, Hiccup (Jay Baruchel), is flying about on his dragon, Toothless, trying to find more species of dragons and map out the unchartered territories around the village. He is also trying to tune out his father, Stoick the Vast (Gerard Butler), who is urging him to take over as the chieftain of Berk. Things seem to be grand, but of course, trouble is on the horizon.

Hiccup and his fiance Astrid (America Ferrera) run into some dragon trappers, who try to steal their dragons. When confronted, they are told about a mysterious man named Drago Bludvist, who is collecting dragons to form an army that will be able to take over Berk. Stoick the Vast is terrified of Drago and believes there is no way to reason with him. But Hiccup believes that just as he was able to tame dragons, he will be able to reason with the murderous Bludvist and reach a compromise. Against his father's wishes, he sets off on a quest that will lead him to make unexpected discoveries about his family, dragons, and himself.

As with the original film, the animators have painstakingly rendered each dragon with a set of unique characteristics that delineate their species and abilities. Each human character is also lovingly rendered and voiced by extremely capable actors (though as ever, I find it confusing that all the adults are Scottish and the kids are American). The supporting characters provide a great deal of comic relief (Kristen Wiig is particularly hilarious as the weird Ruffnut) and the movie contains as many jokes as it does moments of heartfelt family drama or pounding action. There's also a very touching romantic interlude in the middle, which takes advantage of the fine score by John Powell and will appeal to a lot of the adults. A few female characters get to play rescuers instead of rescuees, which will be welcome to any young girls watching the movie, and overall, care has been taken to make a creative movie that still caters to a wide audience.

How to Train Your Dragon 2 is a fun film, guaranteed to please fans of the original and any people who would just like to hear Gerald Butler and Craig Ferguson sing a delightful Scottish ballad. The animators have constructed a beautiful and imaginative world, and they continue to add new characters and twists to keep it engaging.

Highway: A Rocky Road

Imtiaz Ali's first movie, Jab We Met, was a marvelous Bollywood romcom, funny and touching and perfectly reconciling modern romance and old-fashioned Bollywood storytelling. His subsequent movies have left much to be desired, which is why I did not watch his latest film, Highway, until I found myself bored on a plane. But having watched it, I am reminded that Ali is still a great writer-director who knows just how to merge the old with the new. 

Highway stars the spectacular Alia Bhatt as Veera Tripathi, the daughter of a rich businessman who is about to be married. Tired of the endless wedding preparations and forced politeness to interfering relations, she persuades her fiancé to take her out for a drive in the middle of the night to get some fresh air. (Yes, that is literally all she wants to do, this is Bollywood after all.) However, when they stop at a gas station, they witness an armed robbery, and Veera is kidnapped for ransom. 

The leader of the gang is a man named Mahabir (played with angry restraint by Randeep Hooda). He knows it was a mistake to kidnap the daughter of such a well-connected man and simply wants to obtain his ransom and unload her as soon as possible. However, matters get much more complicated. Veera's a rather chatty and neurotic woman, seemingly more suited to being a Woody Allen heroine than a Bollywood damsel in distress. After her initial terror, she grows accustomed to her bizarre life on the road, and becomes increasingly friendly with her captors. But before you chalk this up to a case of Stockholm Syndrome, halfway through the film she reveals something to Mahabir that makes it clear why she might prefer this dangerous life to the opulent one she left behind. 

Imtiaz Ali concerns himself with character first and foremost, plot second. While the plot of Highway might meander slightly and veer in and out of cliche, Veera is a brilliantly realized character, full of dreams, darkness, ambition, and heartbreak. This is completely Alia Bhatt's movie; she commits wholeheartedly to this grimy, glorious role and her evolution over the course of the film is remarkable. Hooda does a tremendous job as well, but his character's natural reserve makes it more difficult to plumb his inner depths. But he still has both darkness and light within him and the two actors complement each other perfectly. 

Highway may not be innovative by Western standards, but it is certainly a valuable addition to the modern Bollywood canon. From a technical standpoint, Anil Mehta's cinematography is luscious, capturing all the beauty that the Indian countryside has to offer along with the dirt and chaos of its cities. A.R Rahman's magnificent music doesn't drown the scenes but uplifts them, lending even more emotion and pathos to the proceedings. But at the heart of it all are those wonderful performances and that powerful script that has such a sad but necessary tale to tell. This is an honest coming-of-age movie and it is refreshing to see Ali return to his roots of empowering female characters and giving them the agency in film that they still lack in real life. 

Outlander Part Deux: The Novel

Sometimes, you read a novel that is so brilliant that you feel like you've been socked in the solar plexus. This has happened to me with certain works of fantasy or Victorian literature. Since Outlander combines historical fiction with fantasy, as well as a dozen other genres, it was a perfect storm. I spent four glorious days reading (and often immediately re-reading) this novel and experiencing a roller coaster ride of emotions that left me breathless.

My recent review of the TV series contains a basic plot summary, so I won't rehash that here. I will say the show hews remarkably close to the book, even lifting entire conversations verbatim, and it is clearly catering to the needs of the long-time fans. I do wonder how the next eight episodes of the first season will tackle the rest of the novel, however, considering that an extraordinarily complex number of events take place. The writers face a seemingly insurmountable task of whittling all that down to eight hours and I look forward to seeing the results in April. But enough about TV writers - let's get to Diana Gabaldon, the original author of this magnificent tome.

Gabaldon's writing style is extraordinary. It is vivid, evocative, funny, dramatic, and moving. Every single one of her characters is a treasure - the first-person narrator, Claire Beauchamp, is an extraordinary woman, a true heroine for the ages. She is feisty, witty, intelligent, and fiercely capable. And her counterpart, Jamie Fraser, is cast in the mold of all those Victorian heroes women have been swooning over for years. Except that he is so much more useful, practical, romantic, and gentlemanly than any Mr. Darcy. Then you have characters like Jonathan "Black Jack" Randall, the most dastardly, stomach-turning villain you have ever encountered, who makes you want to tear your hair out. The secondary characters are too numerous to name, but they all leave an indelible impression as you grow to know and understand them. Whether it's a mysterious witch or some cunning clansmen, each one has a unique part to play in this intricate tale and they are all fully-realized and marvelous to behold.

Outlander's setting in the wild Scottish highlands is beautiful and meticulously researched. Gabaldon's prose places you squarely in the midst of the 1700s and we get to view it through Claire's modern 1945 eyes. Scottish words and phrases are sprinkled in efficiently, enough to remind you that a character is Scottish, but not so much to make them incomprehensible. The violence of the battle scenes and the cruelty of some of the backwards customs are jarring, and Gabaldon doesn't shy away from disgusting or terrifying her readers when such scenes crop up. Likewise, this is a famously sexy series, and she doesn't hold back in those scenes either. There's the much talked-about Chapter 14 (i.e. episode 7 of the TV series, for those not of the literary persuasion), and once Jamie and Claire get married, the novel is brimming with sex. It's not always romantic: sometimes it's angry, cruel, or resentful, but again, it offers up a complete picture of these characters and doesn't hide the turbulent moments of their complicated relationship.

The latter chapters of Outlander are a particularly gruesome and difficult read. You become so invested in these characters that you cannot believe the trials they are forced to bear. Things happen that upset me to even think about now, and yet they are perfectly plausible in the barbaric setting of this novel. The only unrealistic thing about Outlander is how so many of your favorite characters manage to stay alive - if we were really being historically accurate, Jamie would die of sepsis about twenty times over and Claire would have been raped and shot within five minutes of stepping through the stones of Craigh na Dun. Thankfully, Gabaldon does have a heart, and even though she puts her characters through hell, she gives them enough strength and resilience to keep fighting and loving till the end.

In a few shorts weeks, I have become a loyal Outlander fan, and I will be spending a lot of time reading the rest of the novels in the series. If you have been pining for a book that will reach right into your guts and stir up a whole lot of feelings, I can't recommend Outlander highly enough. If you staunchly refuse to read, you can still watch the TV show and see what all the fuss is about. But you'll be missing out on some really spectacular fiction. 

Locke: One Man in a Car

Locke premiered at Sundance in January, was released in a few theaters in April, and then disappeared. I heard great things but promptly forgot about it until I saw it was available for viewing on my flight. Now that I've seen it, I insist you seek it out immediately and treat yourself to this extraordinary movie.

It is tricky to describe this movie because it is only 84 minutes long and each second is a revelation. So here's the basic set-up. For the duration of the movie, you will watch one man, Ivan Locke, driving his car down the motorway and talking to various people on his car phone. He has to deal with a business and personal crisis at the same time, and is stuck in his car, having to explain to various people over the telephone how he is going to fix everything and not let them down. I know this doesn't sound particularly compelling, but Locke is played by Tom Hardy, who delivers a simply masterful performance as a man who is desperately trying to stay calm and calm everyone else down while things just spiral out of control. And the people he talks to are voiced by the likes of Olivia Colman, Ruth Wilson, and Andrew Scott, excellent actors who manage to make their presence felt solely through the power of their voices. I could picture them all in my head and the casting is really quite apt for these characters.

I last saw Tom Hardy in The Dark Knight Rises, where his role relied purely on physicality and menace as the villain, Bane. In Locke, his role is all about the character's psychology. In an hour and a half, you become intimately acquainted with who this man was, how the split-second decision to take a right turn is currently changing his life, and who he might become. Additionally he is doing this with a Welsh accent. I'm not sure why the character had to be Welsh, but I suspect it might be because the accent is so soothing and wonderful that you don't mind having to listen to Hardy speak in a car for the entire duration of the movie with no other change in scenery. He manages to make a concrete pour for a construction project seem like the most high-stakes activity in the world, and I was thoroughly mesmerized. I knew Hardy was a good actor, but this performance makes it clear that he is a great one, and I hope he gets more meaty leading roles in the future that continue to showcase his incredible talent.

Locke is one of those low-budget independent movies that always manage to startle me with their ingenuity. It's such a simple concept, and yet the taut script by writer-director Steven Knight is a work of art, a polished gem that manages to convey an entire world of characters and emotions despite the fact that you are only in a car with one man for the entirety of the film. The cinematography by Haris Zambarloukos is excellent, going in and out of focus on the unrelenting motorway lights and conveying the nightmarish confusion of the events that are taking place. Locke is a reminder that great cinema is driven by plot and performance, and you don't need special effects and millions of dollars to completely blow your audience away.

22 Jump Street: Skewering Sequels

I flew to Geneva this week, which means I got to watch a ton of in-flight movies and catch up on the films that slipped by me in theaters in early 2014. To kick things off, let's discuss 22 Jump Street. 

When I saw 21 Jump Street two years ago, I was pleasantly surprised. I had been expecting a hopeless reboot, and instead got a solidly funny movie that knew how to mock itself while also making full use of its comic talent. Sequels are always a dangerous proposition, but 22 Jump Street continues in the footsteps of its predecessor, as a self-satirizing, over-the-top, gag factory of a movie with two very likeable leads at the helm.

Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill reprise their roles as Morton Schmidt and Greg Jenko, the incompetent yet bizarrely successful duo at the heart of the Jump Street undercover police program. After their high school shenanigans in the last film, they have been promoted to college, where they are posing as freshmen to find the supplier of a new drug called WHYPHY. The differences between the smart but socially awkward Schmidt and dumb but charismatic jock Jenko quickly separate them in the college social structure and threaten to tear the duo apart. You can watch the movie to see whether or not their friendship stands up to the test (though I bet you can figure out the answer to that already).

There isn't much to say about the plot; it's all pretty old hat by now. But the movie is bursting with jokes about sequels and bloated budgets with nothing to show for it that make it clear they understand the audience's preconceived notions. Acknowledging the failings of sequels only makes this movie funnier and it is a two-hour mindlessly entertaining romp. My favorite sequence was a two-second scene where the duo drive past the Bernard Hill Centre of Media Studies as the score suddenly shifts to a variation on the Benny Hill theme song. It is such a throwaway gag yet highlights the filmmakers desire to pack this movie with as many hilarious moments as possible.

The cast is great - Hill and Tatum continue to play wonderfully off of each other, but the addition of Jillian Bell and Amber Stevens in key roles considerably enlivens the proceedings. Ice Cube is particularly scene-stealing as the duo's boss, Captain Dickson, and the whole movie is just brimming with a sense of fun. Ultimately, 22 Jump Street is a movie that doesn't take itself seriously at all, which is why it is a perfect sequel.

The Monogram Murders: Hercule Poirot Returns

As a massive Agatha Christie fan, I was thrilled to learn the Christie estate had authorized a new Hercule Poirot novel. Written by Sophie Hannah, The Monogram Murders is the first novel to feature the Belgian detective since 1975's Curtain: Poirot's Last Case. While it is thrilling to see Poirot back in action, using his "little grey cells," the novel itself a reminder that no one can craft a mystery as well as Agatha Christie.

The novel opens in 1929 London, with Poirot having a vacation of sorts and staying in a guest house. His fellow boarder is a Scotland Yard detective, Edward Catchpool. Catchpool is our narrator: it's unclear why Hannah chose to introduce a new narrator instead of the dependable Captain Hastings, but perhaps having to re-introduce one formidable Christie character was enough for her. Catchpool is very Hastings-esque, able to do solid police work but unable to make the intellectual leaps that are Poirot's forte when the two of them get caught up in a murder investigation of three dead bodies found with monogrammed cufflinks in their mouths. On the evening of the murders, Poirot met a frightened woman named Jennie, and he is convinced that she is linked to the victims and might be next. Catchpool is battling his own psychological demons and is happy to have Poirot's help on this case, despite being constantly made to feel like a dunce as the Belgian makes enigmatic suggestions and laments the deplorable state of Catchpool's intellect. It's a spot-on character study, and Hannah has certainly managed to bring back the Poirot of yore.

Despite Poirot behaving exactly as you'd expect, where The Monogram Murders fails to engage me is the plot. It is entirely too convoluted and melodramatic, reminiscent of the weird spiritualistic novels towards the end of Christie's career. Every Poirot novel features the grand denouement at the end, where he explains everything and points out all the clues that were right under our noses. This novel, however, has multiple denouements, as layer upon layer is added to the mystery until you almost don't care who the murderer is by the end. It's certainly an ingenious plot that works, but it feels too overwrought for a Christie novel. Several plot points also hinge a great deal on people's use of grammar, which makes this feel even more like a labored literary exercise than a truly exciting murder mystery. It all wraps up neatly, but ultimately does not have the ease and and awe-inspiring panache of a Christie novel. 

The Monogram Murders is a fun book for Christie fans but is certainly not a replacement for Christie herself. Rather than await future Poirot or Marple reboots, this novel has convinced me to just re-read the classic Christie novels. Nothing beats the original.