Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby

Rating:	★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Comedy

After missing out on watching “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” on the big screen, I was finally able to catch it on DVD over the weekend. As a Will Ferrell fan, I was expecting big things from this comedy. A genius who can come up with characters like Frank the Tank in “Old School”, Ron Burgundy in “Anchorman”, or his many personas on “Saturday Night Live”, Ferrell is one my top favorite comedians of all time. Therefore, when Jo and I finally sat down to catch “Talladega”, I was going in as a fan.

Ricky Bobby has always wanted to drive fast. He was born in a stock car and his dad Reese (Gary Cole) only appeared every few years because he was drunk, high on drugs, or just bored. When Ricky finally gets to drive in NASCAR, he takes advantage of it and become the best driver. He marries, has two kids, and laughs in the face of his racecar’s owner. But when a new, French driver named Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen) beats him, Ricky’s life unravels. His best friend Cal Naughton Jr. (John C. Reilly) steals his wife, he freaks out when he drives, and loses his sponsors. It’s up to Ricky’s dad to re-teach him how to drive and for Ricky to return to the top of NASCAR.

“Talladega Nights” is by no means Will Ferrell’s best work. For bellyaching laughter, “Anchorman” and “Old School” are the funniest. For good acting, “Stranger Than Fiction” was his best. “Talladega” is just an okay film. It pokes fun at the NASCAR culture and the Southern stereotypes that are associated with those races. Ferrell and Reilly have a funny chemistry between them and that’s a bit surprising since Reilly is often cast in serious productions.

Some of the funniest moments in this film are provided by one of 2006’s big breakout stars, Cohen of “Borat” fame. His quirky, French, gay Girard provides a great counterpoint to Ricky’s arrogant Southern machismo. Proving his versatility in immersing himself in a character, Cohen goes to town as Girard and he too seemed to enjoy a great deal of chemistry with Ferrell.

My problem with “Talladega” is that there aren’t enough “laugh out loud” moments in it. The script, though funny in spots, had no moments that really stood out. Ferrell’s and Cohen’s performances were great, but I’ve seen better from both of them. Maybe it’s the world of NASCAR that alienated me, then again, I did enjoy watching “Days of Thunder” and “Cars” so that can’t be it.

Cohen’s French accent once again cements his reputation as “this generation’s Peter Sellers”, but the film just left me wanting something more. Reilly’s “ignorant best friend act” was okay, but again, the film just felt… bitin. I guess I really have been spoiled by Ferrell’s past work. I keep expecting him to hit homeruns that I’m not appreciating it when he has a simple base hit.

The Holiday

Rating:	★★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Romantic Comedy

If I could get the hell out of Manila and away from my job, I would. I mean, who wouldn’t right? In “The Holiday”, both Amanda (Cameron Diaz) and Iris (Kate Winslet) are desperate to get out of their respective jobs not just for a change in scenery. They’re both trying to get away from relationships that just stunk. Each woman has been hurt by men who didn’t appreciate them and effectively used them as doormats. With that in mind, they meet up online and decide to swap homes for Christmas.

Director Nancy Meyers has proven herself to be pretty capable in the romantic comedy genre. After all, hers was the guiding hand behind recent rom-coms as “The Parent Trap”, “What Women Want”, and “Something’s Gotta Give”. With “The Holiday” though, Meyers puts two strong female characters as her lead stars. Their dilemmas and heartbreaks push this film, and it is their evolution and adapting to a new status quo that ultimately makes the film as well.

Amanda suffered through her parents’ divorce, as well as the cheating ways of her boyfriend Ethan (Edward Burns). She’s the head of her own movie trailer editing house, and successful in Los Angeles, however her breakup with Ethan leaves her depressed. Iris has long pined for Jasper Bloom (Rufus Sewell) as she works in a London newspaper. Jasper, smarmy as he is, says he loves Iris too… then he goes and proposes marriage to someone else. Iris is devastated and wants to forget England, if only for a short time.

Now, I have to admit that the main reason I was curious about this film was seeing Jack Black in the trailer. I had never seen the star of such arthouse triumphs as “Nacho Libre” and “Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny” in a rom-com before, so I wanted to see how he’d do in the genre. As musical scorer Miles, Black is charming and magnetic without coming across as sleazy or overbearing. He makes for a sympathetic hero, someone who Iris can easily turn to. When he’s played for a schmuck by girlfriend Maggie (Shannyn Sossamon), you actually wanted to make sure he was okay.

Jude Law was also brilliant in this film. For once, Law’s portrayal of Iris’ brother Graham isn’t a conniving cad who jumps from one woman to another. He’s genuinely charming (there’s that word again) as a widower and single father who’s trying to raise two daughters while also looking for a new love. It’s easy to see why Amanda would be attracted to him physically, but his devotion to his kids clearly put his appeal level to women over the top.

What Meyer has done in “The Holiday” is craft an engaging, cute, yet not-overly-cheesy romantic comedy that won’t leave you rolling your eyes for two hours. Each of these four main characters were given their time to shine, and each actor delivered. Okay, Jo hates Cameron Diaz, and I have to admit that I don’t think she’s a good actress either. But in tis film, she does a halfway decent job of portraying the clumsy American who’s been beat up in past her relationships.

I am so thankful that Meyers and company gave screentime to Hollywood legend Eli Wallach. The great character actor (who once played the villain in “The Magnificent Seven) effectively steals every scene he shows up in. As aging screenwriter Arthur Abbott, Wallach’s stories of old Hollywood and his burgeoning friendship with Iris help make the film have more substance than the usual films of this genre.

Ultimately, “The Holiday” is still a romantic comedy, but it keeps the comedy on an intelligent, non-slapstick level. Though the final scene was a bit confusing to Jo and myself, we ultimately agreed that this was a fun film to watch. Now if only I could do a house-swap to get miles away from the drudgery of my work…

The Queen

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Drama

To most of us born in the 70s and early 80s, when say “British monarchy”, two images tend be seen instantly: Queen Elizabeth II, and her late former daughter-in-law, Princess Diana. These two polar opposites have had such an impact on the globe and on popular culture, that their iconic personas have been viewed as representative of the United Kingdom. Diana of course burst onto the scene when she married Prince Charles in a gala wedding in the early 1980s. But Queen Elizabeth II had been the most recognizable Briton for a good 30 years before then.

In the film “The Queen”, director Stephen Frears examines the compelling image that is Queen Elizabeth II, and how she and her strict devotion to crown and country may have alienated Lady Diana Spencer. Relying on archive footage of the princess leading up to her 1996 death, Frears hypothesizes how the royal family of Windsor might have been behaving behind closed doors, wondering if the country needed a strong, detached grieving period or a more modern, highly emotional funeral.

Helen Mirren won an Academy Award (on top of other awards) for Best Actress in the title role, and it’s easy to see why. More than just putting on a gray wig, adding a little make-up, and copying Queen Elizabeth’s voice, she makes you believe that she really is the monarch. In this day and age, Britons are already questioning the relevance of a royal family. After all, they don’t work, don’t pay taxes, yet are ridiculously wealthy. Frears’ film gives voice to that argument, but also takes into consideration the special relationship the queen and her family have with the British people.

Michael Sheen plays newly elected Prime Minister Tony Blair and he does so with aplomb. His Blair is understandably nervous when he first meets the queen, yet he also knows that between the two of them, he was the one with a mandate from the people. By trusting his advisors in this time of grief, Blair comes across as a father figure for the Brits, putting the royals in a bad light in the process. Still, when those same advisers (and his own wife) want Blair to crucify the queen, no one is more adamant about supporting Queen Elizabeth than Blair himself.

I, of course, have known of no other British ruler save for Queen Elizabeth II. When I was growing up, I too was amazed at how pretty the new princess of Wales was. Yet as I got older, I began to realize that these two people just couldn’t get along. Prince Charles having an affair certainly didn’t help, but everyone always looked to Elizabeth and Diana as the British icon of the moment.

Mirren is absolutely brilliant as Elizabeth. She and her immediate family have such a regal bearing, and are so annoyed with Diana’s continued defiance of what they believe should be law, that they seem as arrogant, domineering, and, basically, regal. After all, what king or queen would allow one of their subjects to spit in their face and defy their will?

With Diana’s death, the queen thought that a strong, calm stance was what the people needed to grieve. She and her advisors were completely taken aback at the emotional outpouring that came from people in and out of the U.K. Mirren plays Elizabeth as flabbergasted by this reaction, a queen who sees that perhaps she doesn’t know her people as well as she did. However, that too is proven false when, upon visiting mourners outside Buckingham Palace, her subjects still show their respect for their beloved monarch.

Though this is a work of fiction, it is easy to believe that the events could have played out like this in the inner workings of Buckingham Palace and Downing Street. Credit must be given to the actors, refusing to turn their portrayals into mere caricatures, but giving a proper and respectful performance to people in the halls of British power. Both James Cromwell as Prince Philip and Alex Jennings as Prince Charles were very credible as the men who are closest to the queen. Their subtle performances gave Mirren an even shinier shine than she already had.

I cannot help but gush at what Helen Mirren did in this movie. She made Elizabeth II so human, so real, it truly is heartbreaking when she finally shows off some emotion. For although Queen Elizabeth II has been a monarch for over 50 years, so few of us have seen her being anything but “queenly”. This film shows us that, and more. Long live “The Queen”!