So, Mark and I just got back from a rendezvous date at our little independent theater in town. It is one of our very favorite spots to visit.
We caught their matinée of a simple, funny, poignant coming-of-age movie entitled, "
The Way Way Back." This movie boasts an impressive cast - Steve Carell, Toni Collette, Allison Janney, Sam Rockwell, Maya Rudolph, Amanda Peet, Liam James, and more.
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Photo from IMDb.com |
If you haven't seen this movie, hurry up and go see it. But don't look in your big chain cinemas that only show Hollywood blockbusters and other boring, predictable, formulaic movies. Go find a local indie theater and settle in for a movie that will make you laugh, cry, and move you. The entire cast of this show will have you spellbound in every, single scene. And, being that the name of this post is "My Kind of Movie," don't expect any grand adventure or huge plot. I like simple and quirky. And when two directors can take "simple" and deliver big through cast, music, and writing, you have something I would rate 10/10 stars.
It's a spare, unassuming story set in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts (think clambakes, lobster bakes, bike rides, watermelon, and beaches), where a young, shy teenage boy named Duncan (James) goes on vacation with his mother (Collette) and her
overbearing boyfriend (Carell). Struggling to fit in, Duncan finds an unexpected friend in funny and easy-going Owen (Rockwell), manager of the
Water Wizz water park.
When the credits started rolling, I swallowed my tears, leaned over to Mark, and said, "I
loved it." This is most definitely my kind of movie.
What other movies would make my list of quirky, fun, offbeat, simple, mesmerizing, poignant, entrancing films? You know, uncomplicated story, great cast, excellent writing, good music, and heartwarming, captivating simplicity? (Bonus if it has an ambiguous ending)! Well, here's a sampling (all pictures are from IMDb.com, where most, if not all, of these movies rate more than 7 stars):
(500) Days of Summer
A quirky, offbeat film starring Zooey Deschanel (Summer) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
She doesn't believe true love exists; he falls for her.
What's not to love?
Amélie
I'm a big fan of foreign films, too. Many of them fit the description I've written above.
This is one of them. A simple, sweet story about a young girl in Paris. Enough said.
Barney's Version
I love Paul Giamatti. He is excellent in everything I've seen him in.
This movie is no exception. It's all about Barney.
I'll say no more, because I don't want to give away the experience.
And that is what these kinds of movies are about - you shouldn't just "see a movie."
You should have an experience.
Flipped
How? How? How has this movie not garnered far more press than it did?
Directed by Rob Reiner (hello!), this film tells the story of Juli Baker, who loves trees and wants to kiss Bryce Loski. She's been smitten with him since the second grade. Then in eighth grade, everything changes. Bryce begins to look at Juli differently, but does she feel the same? Beautifully told from two different perspectives, this movie will have your heart. GO. SEE. IT. This is one not to be missed. I can't oversell it. Watch, no . . . experience it.
It's Kind of a Funny Story
A story of a depressed teen's new start that comes after he checks himself into an adult psychiatric hospital.
Lauren Graham is in it, too. Sweet story, great flick.
Like Crazy
In "Like Crazy," Anna, a British college student, falls in love with an American student, Jacob. When graduation approaches,
Anna decides to stay, in direct violation to the terms of her student visa. After a visit home, she is unable to return to the
United States. Fighting customs and immigration battles, they must decide if their relationship is worth the distance and the
hardship. Another great foreign film.
Little Miss Sunshine
A great ensemble cast tells the story of a highly dysfunctional family on a road trip to get their young daughter into the finals of a
beauty pageant. Outrageously funny. Seriously, you may fall off your chair. Terrific payoff in this movie.
Moonrise Kingdom
Seriously, aren't these posters the best?!? With these kinds of movies, even the posters are creative and different and telling. They fit. They're quirky. Like the films they profess. Like this one. Moonrise Kingdom - it doesn't get quirkier than this. Set in the 1960s, a local search party looks for a pair of young lovers who have fled their small New England town. Starring Ed Norton, Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton, Jason Schwartzman, and more. It's vintage; it's quirky; it's off-beat.
Once
This foreign film is like a wonderful, extended music video of a love song. It tells the story of a busker and an immigrant and their week in Dublin, as they write, rehearse and record songs together - the songs that tell their story. It's beautiful and features the hauntingly lyrical "Falling Slowly."
Win Win
Another great Paul Giamatti film. In this one, he plays Mike Flaherty, a disillusioned attorney who moonlights as a high
school wrestling coach. He meets a star athlete through some
questionable business dealings while desperately trying to support his family. Just
as he is about to get a double payday, the boy's mother shows up
fresh out of rehab and flat broke, threatening to derail everything.
I could go on and on. Here are a few more movies I would add to this list:
High Fidelity - John Cusack, my favorite Hollywood heartthrob, stars in this one, so that should be reason enough to watch it. It is based on a Nick Hornby book, so there's another reason to watch it. This hilarious movie follows the 'mid-life' crisis of Rob, a thirty-something
record-store owner and compulsive list maker, who, together with his off-beat clerks, tries to navigate and explain the grown-up world of love and relationships. Rob recounts his five top break-ups, wondering if pop music is the reason for them all.
Please Give - I'm a big fan of all of Nicole Holofcener's films. This one is no exception. In fact, it may be my favorite. It stars Catherine Keener (she is in almost all of Holofcener's films) and is the story of a husband and wife in New York City, their cranky elderly neighbor woman, and her two granddaughters. Another movie that is most certainly an experience.
Friends with Money - Another Holofcener film. This one stars Jennifer Aniston playing Olivia, a woman who quits her lucrative job and then finds herself unsure about her
future and her relationships with her successful, wealthy friends.
(I'm excited that Nicole Holofcener has another film coming out this fall - "Enough Said" - starring Julia Louis-Dreyfus and the late James Gandolfini - that also looks excellent). Her movies have a great
feel to them.
Garden State - Written and directed by Zach Braff, this movie tells the story of a man named Andrew who returns home for his mother's funeral after ten years of being estranged from his controlling, psychiatrist father. His father has always made Andrew feel that his mother's wheelchair-bound
life was his fault. Now Andrew tries to get off of the meds his father pushed on him and see life through his own eyes, all while starting a relationship with a girl who has problems of her own. Another quirky, haunting, cinematic experience.
Sideways - Yep, it's another Paul Giamatti movie. This one tells the story of two middle-aged men with not much to show but disappointment. They
set off on a week-long road trip through California's wine country, just
as one of them is about to get married. This film highlights the art of winery.
Sunshine Cleaning - Crazy storyline in this one starring Amy Adams (who I think looks A TON like Jenna Fischer from The Office), Emily Blunt, and Alan Arkin. A young mom must raise money for tuition to send her young son to private school, so she starts unusual business -- a biohazard removal/crime scene
clean-up service. Need I say more?!
Jeff, Who Lives At Home - This quirky film stars Jason Segel (who we love) and Ed Helms. Jeff is 30 years old, unemployed, and lives in his mom's basement. He is looking for signs
telling him what to do with his life. He answers a wrong-number call for
"Kevin." Convinced that this is a sign, he sets off following all "Kevin" signs he sees. Jeff's brother, Pat, upsets his wife by buying a Porsche they cannot
afford. Pat and Jeff together see Pat's wife with
another man. And at her job, Jeff and Pat's mom (Susan Sarandon) receives e-mails from a
secret admirer and tries to figure out who it is. This movie is full of misunderstandings, mistakes, and confrontations.
An Education - Nick Hornby wrote the screenplay for this film that tells the coming-of-age story about a teenage girl in 1960s suburban London, who begins to meet up with a much older playboy. I really enjoyed this movie.
3 Idiots - So this was our first experience with a Bollywood film and I have to say that we absolutely
loved it. I
hate stupid movies and the cover for this one looked so stupid. The only reason we checked out this film was because, while looking for movies to watch, this one was in the Redbox years ago, and as we looked up the different movies available to us (on IMDb.com), this one had an incredible 8+ rating! Impressed with the rating (though somewhat skeptical), we decided to take a chance and we're glad we did. GREAT film. In it, two friends are searching for their long-lost companion. Together, they revisit
their college days and recall memories of their friend and how he inspired
them to think differently, even as everyone else called them
"idiots." Don't let the title or cover scare you off like it almost did us. This is a moving, inspirational movie. Almost 3 hours long, it will keep you interested the whole time. Try this Bollywood film!
The Girl in the Café - In this film, Bill Nighy plays Lawrence, an aging, lonely civil servant, who falls for Gina (Kelly Macdonald - voice of Merida in "Brave"), a mysterious young woman he meets in a café, when he is in town for the G8 Summit in Reykjavik. Simple and captivating, this movie will win you over.
$5/Day - This is a fun film we're glad to have discovered. Christopher Walken plays the conman father to a very conservative son, who begrudgingly agrees to go on a road trip with his father. The caveat? His father tells him they can do it on $5 a day. I won't give it away - just watch it.
Other great (in my opinion) recommendations include:
About a Boy, The King's Speech, Waking Ned Devine, Definitely Maybe, The Invention of Lying, Silver Linings Playbook, Lars and the Real Girl, Jesus H. Christ, Midnight in Paris (Woody Allen), and
Doubt.
The next movie coming to our local theater isn't quirky or offbeat. It is "
The Butler" and it looks like an absolutely excellent Hollywood film. Have you seen this cast?!? Forest Whitaker,
Alan Rickman, Oprah Winfrey, Robin Williams,
John Cusack, Vanessa Redgrave, Liev Schreiber, Jane Fonda, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Terrence Howard, Lenny Kravitz, James Marsden, and more. It is based on a true story and tells of race relations in the U.S. as seen through the eyes of a black butler who lived at the White House through 7 presidencies and 30 years.
What else can you recommend based on this list? I'd love to hear more suggestions . . .