The Tucker Moviepalooza Day 1!

There are many reason why I love my wife.  Not to bore you but we've known each other for 16 years now and, I'm proud to say, she's become quite the film buff.  Our first date was Toy Story and our second date was From Dusk Till Dawn.  For a girl who had only been watching Disney and chick flicks for the first 16 years of her life, the latter was quite a system shock.  However, she stayed with me and the rest is history.

Why bring this up now?  Well, two weeks ago we were discussing our holiday plans.  She informed me she would be off the two days before New Year's Eve, and that we should see two movies on each of those days.  Yes, we would create our own film festival, the Tucker Moviepalooza!

We decided to go arty for day 1 of the fest, so we jumped on a train and headed to Philadelphia for some Ritz Theater goodness.  We visited the Reading Terminal Market for lunch, hit the Bourse between films for some hot chocolate, and took in a nice walk through Old City.  We saw movie #1 at the Ritz V.  What was this movie?  Well...

The Artist

I had been hearing some major Oscar buzz surrounding this film, but I was still not completely sure what is was about.  Turns out it's a (mostly) silent film about a silent film star struggling to stay relevant in the transition to talkies.  Was it a gimmicky waste or a treasure?

The Good

• All the positive buzz surrounding this film is well deserved.  Simply put, it is an amazing film.  It may be a gimmick, but it is so well executed you won't care.
• The acting is wonderful, especially since the cast doesn't speak.  It is based solely on facial expressions and movements.  Special mention to the leads Jean Dujardin and Berenice Bejo.  Dujardin is the title character you cannot help feel sorry for.  What is also nice is he seems to be a pretty good guy overall, not your typical a**hole that gets reformed by the end of the film.  Bejo plays an actress who takes advantage of the silent to talky phenomenon, but is still the nicest person in the world.  You'll recognize a ton of other faces as well, and they're all great.
• The music is some of the most wonderful I've ever heard in a movie.  I was almost brought to tears by the sheer joy of the score and songs.  I could watch this film over and over and never get sick of this fantastic music.  I am currently Ludovic Bource's biggest fan (he wrote the music).
• The directing is great, with some beautifully framed shots and some beautiful black and white cinematography.  Another surprise was the director's choice to shoot in 4:3 aspect to further represent the era of film.
• The dog, possibly the coolest dog in all of film.
• Some wonderfully unexpected whimsical and comedic moments round out the overall spectacular experience.

The Bad

• I'm stretching here, but maybe some shots were a bit too long.
• Some morons won't watch this simply because it's in black and white and silent.  Get over it because you're missing a gem.

I truly hope this gets a wide release before the Oscars so people get a chance to see how great it really is.  If you can find it playing near you, see it.  You will not regret it!

Rating- 10/10

Our next stop was right down the street at the Ritz East.  I heard a funny exchange as I was in line for concessions.  An older gentleman bought a ticket for the only movie playing in the only theater in the place, yet still asked what theater it was in.  The guy n the box office answered, "The only one!"  People are REALLY stupid.  Anyway, movie #2 was...

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

This is another movie people were talking about for a long time.  Based off the John Le Carre spy masterpiece, this is a dense ensemble picture that has been garnering some fantastic reviews over the past few months.  Are they well-deserved?

The Good

• What a cast!  Some of the best British actors of today and yesterday give nearly perfect performances, led by the great Gary Oldman.  Oldman plays George Smiley as both endearing and brutally business-oriented with the skill of the great thespian he is.  It's a tall order to be the standout in a cast like this, but Oldman clearly owns this film.
• If you have any interest in espionage thrillers, you should seek this out.  It is much more densely plotted than the Bourne franchise, but ultimately more rewarding given this is pretty much regarded as what started the whole spy craze in the first place.
• Great directing from Tomas Alfredson (Let the Right One In), including great music cues, intimate close-ups and beautiful locations.
• People should crave a film like this every once and a while.  You need to pay attention and lose yourself in the sheer brilliance of the writing.  It is a very rewarding experience.

The Bad

• The fact that this was one of the first spy thrillers unfortunately lent itself to being a tiny bit predictable in some spots.
• The director's choice of throwing in seemingly unrelated scenes and unlabeled flashbacks will confuse many viewers, especially those with a short attention span.
• Although masterfully acted and directed, this is not one of those movies you'll watch multiple times.  It's not what I would call an entertaining film.

Don't be immediately turned off by my comments, this is still a wonderful movie that deserves to be seen.

Rating- 8/10

Well, that's day 1 of the Tucker Moviepalooza done!  What's in store for day 2?  You'll have to tune in tomorrow and see.  Until then, comment away!