The Zen of Bennett (2012)

IMDb plot summary: A documentary set on the eve of Tony Bennett's 85th birthday.
Directed by Unjoo Moon.

This is an awkward documentary in that it doesn't seem to be putting any effort in to actually giving us a glimpse of its subject's life or personality. The most interesting moments by far are watching Bennett record duets with a variety of other talented singers and getting a glimpse into how they work together. But this film doesn't make him look at all interesting. We only get a tiny peek into the details of his life, so it's not usual as a biography, and his observations and thoughts are incredibly vague, so it's not useful or interesting as a character piece. We get zero insight into his creative process or, really, much of his view on life as a whole. I'd like to think he could be a more interesting documentary subject than the movie made him out to be, but I feel like it tried to paint him as some incredibly wise man when, really, he just comes across a regular guy who likes singing. Watching him sing is fun. Everything else in the documentary is scattered. I wish they'd focused more heavily on the music and left the rest alone.

2 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Zen of Bennett < Rebecca
The Zen of Bennett < Bad Moms
The Zen of Bennett > Faces
The Zen of Bennett > Courageous
The Zen of Bennett < The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
The Zen of Bennett < Stuart Little
The Zen of Bennett > The Rookie
The Zen of Bennett > Winter Passing
The Zen of Bennett > Bewitched
The Zen of Bennett > And Then There Were None (1945)
The Zen of Bennett < Facing the Giants
Final spot: #1986 out of 2490, which seems a bit too low.

Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

IMDb plot summary: Powerful but unethical Broadway columnist J.J. Hunsecker coerces unscrupulous press agent Sidney Falco into breaking up his sister's romance with a jazz musician.
Directed by Alexander Mackendrick. Starring Burt Lancaster, Tony Curtis, Susan Harrison, and Martin Milner.

(Minor spoilers ahead.)

I went into this movie thinking it was more satire and less noir, so the extremely dark tone took me by surprise. There is also a LOT going on in this movie, with a lot of characters and subtext to keep track of. It definitely left me feeling like there is a lot more beneath the surface. I was more than anything drawn to the story of J.J.'s young sister, who is so under her brother's corrupt, abusive thumb that she doesn't know how to escape. A lot of the movie is a sort of dark intrigue adventure as Tony Curtis tries to get what he wants, but it wasn't until the more emotional aspects of the story that I really got into it. This is one that it's going to take me a while to process, I think, so I want to let it sit and then rewatch it a year or two down the line and see how it falls after I've had some time to think about it.

3.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Sweet Smell of Success > Good Morning, Vietnam
Sweet Smell of Success < The Artist
Sweet Smell of Success > Children of Paradise
Sweet Smell of Success > Hamlet (2009)
Sweet Smell of Success < sex, lies, and videotape
Sweet Smell of Success < Creed
Sweet Smell of Success < Ninotchka
Sweet Smell of Success > 21
Sweet Smell of Success < Collateral
Sweet Smell of Success > Liberal Arts
Sweet Smell of Success > Hail, Caesar!

Final spot: #761 out of 2482.

She Loves Me (2016)

No IMDb plot summary.
Directed by Scott Ellis. Starring Zachary Levi, Laura Benanti, Jane Krakowski, and Tom McGowan.

I really knew very little of this musical before going into it, except that it was written by Fiddler on the Roof's team of Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick, and that it was based on the movie The Shop Around the Corner. They really should have kept that original title, because it evokes the ensemble feel of this show more accurately, as opposed to "She Loves Me," which made me think it was going to be much more focused on the primary love story. The show is kind of all over the place from a narrative standpoint and doesn't earn its love story at all. There are some good songs, but far too many of them, and about half of them devoted to nonessential subplots that took up precious time needed to flesh out the core story. The production itself is pretty good -- Laura Benanti is delightful as always, and although I find Zachary Levi a little too goofy at times, he pulls off this role pretty well. The supporting cast is excellent, which is good since they're carrying so much of the show. It's a sweet little romantic comedy but at best it's a good production of a half-baked show.

2.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
She Loves Me > Days of Heaven
She Loves Me < American Outlaws
She Loves Me < The Gold Rush
She Loves Me < Wonder Man
She Loves Me < George of the Jungle
She Loves Me > Ratatouille
She Loves Me < The Scarlet and the Black
She Loves Me > Outbreak
She Loves Me < Captains Courageous
She Loves Me > When Strangers Click
She Loves Me < Thoughtcrimes
Final spot: #1193 out of 2489.

When I Walk (2013)

IMDb plot summary: In 2006, doctors told 25-year-old Jason DaSilva that he had multiple sclerosis. Jason picked up the camera, turned it on his declining body, and set out on a worldwide journey in search of healing, self-discovery, and love.
Directed by Jason DaSilva.

I admit this film held a certain personal fascination for me. As someone who has a chronic illness that sometimes limits my mobility, it was especially eerie watching the filmmaker slowly lose his ability to walk and dress himself. I like the meta-narrative here, of someone trying to make what they know will be their last movie before they fully lose their vision, but the idea of that narrative is unfortunately more interesting than the movie itself. Making such a highly personal film has to be difficult, since you still need to have the artistic objectivity to evaluate the movie on its own terms, and unfortunately that didn't quite work out here. I wish the film was better than this, but it's much flatter than the premise promises.

2.5 stars.


Not on Flickchart yet, but when it is, I will add it and update this review.

The Secret Life of Pets (2016)

IMDb plot summary: A terrier named Max's quiet life is upended when his owner takes in Duke, a stray, who Max instantly dislikes.
Directed by Yarrow Cheney and Chris Renaud. Starring Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, and Jenny Slate.

The trailer for this was funny and delightful, and so were the movie's first 15 minutes or so -- mostly because that was everything in the trailer. Unfortunately, everything goes downhill from there. The movie crams too many subplots and far too many unnecessary characters into what becomes an exhausting, hyperactive whirlwind of a story that goes on for a seemingly infinite time. Trim about half of this movie and flesh out the other half, and you've got a decent little movie, but as it is, it's a huge mess. You can see it trying so hard to be Pixar -- all the way down to basically stealing the entire plot for Toy Story and just making it about dogs -- but the attempted heartfelt moments are awkward, poorly timed, and never resolved, because the movie was just too anxious to get back to crazy car chases and wisecracking rabbits. This movie was a massive disappointment. It could have been so great and then it sabotaged itself.

1.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
The Secret Life of Pets < Good Morning, Vietnam
The Secret Life of Pets > Rebel Without a Cause
The Secret Life of Pets < Love's Labour's Lost
The Secret Life of Pets > The Sword in the Stone
The Secret Life of Pets < The Wicker Man (1973)
The Secret Life of Pets > Beaches
The Secret Life of Pets < Into the Wild
The Secret Life of Pets < The Secret of My Success
The Secret Life of Pets < City Slickers
The Secret Life of Pets < The Trouble With Angels
The Secret Life of Pets > Snatch.

Final spot: #1665 out of 2481.

Paris, Texas (1984)

IMDb plot summary: Travis Henderson, an aimless drifter who has been missing for four years, wanders out of the desert and must reconnect with society, himself, his life, and his family.
Directed by Wim Wenders. Starring Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Stockwell, Hunter Carson, and Nastassja Kinski.

(Definite spoilers ahead)

This was a totally different movie than I anticipated it being... that "Texas" name made me think it was going to be much more of a western, but this is a very straightforward drama about a family that fell apart. The characters are so compelling, and each scene is fascinating to watch. My only complaint is that I wasn't quite sold on the ending. I don't know that it's a fair complaint since I can't envision what I would have preferred, but I wasn't convinced by Travis saying he needed to leave, so as beautifully shot as his departure was, I didn't buy it. Apart from that, though, this was a really interesting movie and I'm glad I finally buckled down and watched it.

3.5 stars.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Paris, Texas > Good Morning, Vietnam
Paris, Texas < Argo
Paris, Texas > A Matter of Life and Death
Paris, Texas > The Green Mile
Paris, Texas > Princess Mononoke
Paris, Texas < Don't Drink the Water
Paris, Texas < Seven Up!
Paris, Texas > A Goofy Movie
Paris, Texas < Throne of Blood
Paris, Texas > My Date With Drew
Paris, Texas > Sanjuro
Final spot: #683 out of 2480.

Maggie's Plan (2015)

IMDb plot summary: Maggie's plan to have a baby on her own is derailed when she falls in love with John, a married man, destroying his volatile marriage to the brilliant Georgette.
Directed by Rebecca Miller. Starring Ethan Hawke, Julianne Moore, Greta Gerwig, and Bill Hader.

It's hard to think of a recent movie that left less of an impression on me than this one. The only thing I came away from it with was a certainty that I do not care for Greta Gerwig. Her acting always seems so insincere to me, and while that worked in Frances Ha, where she was supposed to be a detached, insincere millennial, it made the first half of this movie especially ring very false. There's just no point to the story as a whole; it meanders through unlikeable characters and awkward scenes and ends up... nowhere. This is indie comedy/drama at its least compelling.

1 star.

How it entered my Flickchart:
Maggie's Plan < Good Morning, Vietnam
Maggie's Plan < Rebel Without a Cause
Maggie's Plan > The Good German
Maggie's Plan > Detour
Maggie's Plan > Thor: The Dark World
Maggie's Plan < The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Maggie's Plan < Pete's Dragon
Maggie's Plan < Mulan
Maggie's Plan < Gilda
Maggie's Plan < The Balloonatic
Maggie's Plan > 10 Items or Less

Final spot: #1935 out of 2479.