Shutter Island

This movie is not nearly as scary and the previews would lead you to believe. But it is much weirder than you might expect. Without giving too much away, this is another one of those stories where you think you know who the good guys and bad guys are until the end of the movie when you are surprised by who really is whom.

Leonardo DiCaprio does another great job playing a Boston-based cop. The range of emotions on display here are wonderful. Mark Ruffalo plays a very cool opposite to DiCaprio's overwrought character. Nice pairing of contrasts.

The supporting cast is very impressive and deserves much of the credit for the thrill in this crime thriller. Ben Kingsley and Max von Sydow are the biggest but by no means the best. I loved Ted Levine in the one scene he had with lines. Powerful stuff. Patricia Clarkson, Michelle Williams, John Carol Lynch, Elias Koteas, and Jackie Earle Haley all had pivotal roles played well.

The r-rating is for disturbing violent scenes although you never actually see much violence. What is implied however is very disturbing. Director Martin Scorsese does an amazing job of letting the audience's mind think it's knows whats going on. His continuity team really let him down however. The list of goofs is long and does not appear to include my favorite. A female patient who is given a glass of water to drink while being interviewed, raises an obviously empty right hand to drink and sets an empty glass down on the table with her left. What?

Watch this movie with someone who enjoys a good psycho-thriller with more psychos than thrillers.

The Brothers Bloom

This is an excellent example of smart, fun, captivating story-telling by yet another independent production company. Hats off to Rian Johnson who wrote and directed this delightful melodramatic dark comedy.

Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo play brothers who make their way in the world as con men. Rufflalo's character loves the hunt but Brody's character, Bloom, wants out. Sounds vaguely familiar? I was worried this was going to be an updated version of "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" but it was very fresh and not even close to the same story.

Rachel Weisz plays the con team's last mark and in the end everyone gets what they want. The best con of all.

Beautifully photographed all over Eastern Europe the director makes very creative use of light and shadow. Nicely done Mr. Johnson.

Don't expect this to be a romantic comedy. There are elements of both, but the comedy does not come from the romance or vice versa. This is first and foremost a drama as two 30-something misfits struggle to make their own place in the world.

Unlike so many stories lately with no characters to like or even relate to, this story has a relatively small cast and every one of them is interesting and fun to watch.

And when was the last time you came away from a movie with a handful of fun one-liners?

"You are constipated deep down in your soul" and "Your smile is the sunshine which fallen men need to see" are just a couple of fun paraphrases.

Watch this movie with someone who loves the unexpected.

Just Like Heaven

If you like quirky romantic comedies, this one puts a cute spin on an old formula. Without being too sappy, this story puts destined souls together is an odd way. If you are big on fate, destiny, or soul mates, you may enjoy this story.

Reese Witherspoon's character pretty much has to die before she meets the man of her dreams. Mark Ruffalo plays the guy and holds his own with big star Witherspoon and a beautiful San Francisco setting. In fact, the setting is part of what brings these two together. The story even has a tidy, satisfying ending for the romantics in the audience.

There are some good laughs and wonderful scenery. There are some fun comic-relief characters as well in the form of Donal Logue (Tao of Steve) and Jon Heder (Napolean Dynamite).

If you like a challenge, watch the hospital scene with a comatose Witherspoon in the bed AND the standing Witherspoon in the same scene. See if you can figure out how they did that scene without special effects, which I assure you, they did not.

Watch this movie with someone from San Francisco who can point out what's real and what's now, if you can find one.

What Doesn't Kill You

Watching this movie will not kill you, but it make make you a bit older. If you like slow-moving dramas with in-depth character development, you should like this story. It is not an action-packed crime thriller. It is not a thriller in any sense. It is however an interesting story told in an interesting way.

Brian Goodman wrote and directs this film. He also stars in it but does not play himself. See if you can figure out which character is based on his pre-hollywood life without watching the extra features. You may be very surprised.

Ethan Hawke is the big box office name in this movie but his character is different than most everything else he does. And, he does it with convincing flair. Mark Ruffalo takes a share of the lead and does an amazing job of telling the story of a loser who struggles to make things right in his life.

If you think you know how this movie ends, guess again. Watch all of it.

Watch all of it with someone who facing a very big challenge and is not sure they can make it.

Reservation Road

If you want a statistics lesson in the small number of hit and run crimes which are solved in this country, you may want to watch this movie. If you are looking for a reason to take the law into your own hands, this movie might give you some inspiration. On the other hand, if you find very realistic suffering caused by the loss of a child, maybe this is not the best revenge story for you. If you enjoy a flashy uber-violent ending where the bad guy is eviscerated by the very weapons he used to impose suffering on his innocent and lovable victims, this movie is not for you. No, I did not just spoil the ending.

Now that my warnings are out of the way, and you have a better idea of where this movie fits in the scheme of things, I can get to how well done it is, and how well Director Terry George gets his points across without shouting at us from a soapbox. His work in Hotel Rwanda proved that point as well.

Joaquin Phoenix and Jennifer Connelly do a masterful job of taking us through the range of emotions parents would go through after an accident like this. They also demonstrate how tough it is for a relationship to survive any traumatic experience that, while being the same on the outside, is internalized differently by each individual. Sometimes that difference cannot be emotionally reconciled by others.

Mark Ruffalo may be the bad guy here but his acting is so good it's almost hard to not like his character. Almost. I like how well he portrayed all the conflicting emotions that would be going on in the mind and soul of such a guilty person.

While the ending is not all that satisfying, it is tidy and believable.

Watch it with someone who will enjoy all the ironies of conflicting emotions and complexities of parent-child relationships.