Updated RankingsA Good Year (2006)
* * ½ Pleasant. Very light as entertainment and overly-routine as another story of a middle-aged man who learns there’s more to life than money. The more it tries to be funny, the less funny it is, so maybe it’s good there are so few jokes in it. Mostly warm smiles and hardly enough of those.
Body of Lies (2008)
* * The film aims for complexity and depth, but it needed a cleaner narrative to be more engaging, relying too much on the cast to make that happen. Thinking about the story after only made me realize how much everything is supported with unoriginal character motivations and story clichés. Mark Strong plays a character named Hani, but every time DiCaprio says it, it sounds like “Honey”, which is unintentionally funny.
The Counselor (2013)
* * ½ It’s been years now, so until I read
Junior’s review I didn’t remember that Cameron Diaz having sex with a windshield was a thing, and yes it’s Javier Bardem’s description that really makes the moment. I did remember hearing about the decapitation machine, though I didn’t know when it would make an appearance until Scott’s masterful build-up. It’s another moment that doesn’t disappoint.
I liked the story’s noir nastiness, but Junior is also right that Cameron Diaz is outclassed by the other actors. She doesn’t even physically fit the part, playing dress up while the other stars inhabit their roles. There’s a good film in here, but somebody needed to recast Diaz, and it would’ve helped to trim down Cormac McCarthy’s philosophical ramblings. He’s a great writer and some scenes – like the ones with Brad Pitt – really pop, but there are a number of exchanges that get lost in the weeds of McCarthy’s word processor.
Exodus: Gods and Kings (2014)
* *The problem with the racist casting is Ridley Scott’s attention to detail only heightens the insult as the actors cover themselves in Egyptian totems. Christian Bale and Joel Edgerton are bad enough, and I cringed at the sight of John Tuturro, but the casting director goes the extra mile with Aaron Paul, Ben Mendelson and uber-Scot Ewen Bremner.
The plagues and miracles that make up most of the last hour are the highlight, created with a great deal of excitement by Scott and his effects crew. Aside from the casting, I prefer this piece of old testament cinema to Aronofsky’s overblown, loopy Noah.
Someone to Watch Over Me (1987)
* * ½ Ridley Scott films are always drenched in style, but this one is so steeped in the 80s I’m surprised the cinematographer never worked with Adrian Lyne. The entire high-gloss B-Movie cop thriller could be mistaken for a Lyne film, and I don’t mean that as a slam. Lyne made some good films, but he’s not as good as Ridley, who I hold to a higher standard. Still, I like B-Movie Ridley, typified by the beautifully staged and executed cat-and-mouse assassination attempt in this film. I would easily trade 1492 and Exodus for more like G.I. Jane, though scripts like those and this one always were a better fit for brother Tony.
Stars Tom Berenger and Mimi Rogers take a back seat to Lorraine Bracco who’s handed the thankless role of the scolding wife and makes her the film’s most appealing character. She taps into something deeper while everyone else is just going through the motions.