FROST/NIXON

MPAA Rating: R for some language.
Run time: 122 min

As boxing fan, this film remind me of Ali vs Frazier, Rumble in the Jungle where the participant exchanging verbal jabs, powered with extreme close ups.

Ron Howard's Frost/Nixon is a dramatized version of the famous 1977 interview where David Frost corner Richard Nixon, a thing not even any inquisitor could ever do at that time. Who is David Frost? He is not the 70s version of Dan Rather or Walter Cronkite, only a talk show host who interview celebrities.

But success in America is unlike success anywhere else. So David Frost (Michael Sheen) try his luck by offering Nixon (Frank Langella) $600,000 from his own pocket to conduct a "no holds barred" interview in California, years after Nixon resigned.

The beginning wasn't look nice for Frost, Nixon can return the jabs while Frost's team, an experienced TV newsman, Bob Zelnick (Oliver Platt) and a researcher, James Reston Jr. (Sam Rockwell) seem desperate to nail the only U.S. President ever resigned.

Sure, the cream of the 12 day interview is the Watergate case where Frost wanted to give Nixon the trial he never has or even push him to confess his crimes. As Frost throw his notepad, we all now that the gloves has come off and Nixon, like it or not, has to throw the towel. This is more than just a Nixon trial that should have happened had Ford didn't give him pardon, it is a cynical look on how TV could reduce anyone's career (or legacies) just by a simple close up.

The performances were compelling, Frank Langella is a serious competitor for Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino in the award season. The script and editing was well paced and what makes me still wonder, how Ron Howard can make a boring interview with heavy subjects very mesmerizing and rewarding to watch.

AMERICAN TEEN

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some strong language, sexual material, some drinking and brief smoking-all involving teens.
Run time: 95 min


What has changed in teenland over 30 years? This documentary shows that nothing has changed much, the same clique and stereotype still rule. This documentary encompass a year of four high school students in Warsaw, Indiana. The students who perfectly fits to the stereotype. There's Megan, the popular queen bee(tch) who has to face pressure from her father to enroll at Notre Dame, Colin Clemens, the popular jock (without annoying attitude), the basketball star who strive to get some scholarship.

Then there's the rebel, Hannah Bailey who looks like the innocent version of Julia Stiles and dreams to study film and Jake Tusing, the self-described nerd, loves video games and shows the lighter side of being a teen. During the whole movie all characters undergo some changes, breakups, success, tears and so on.

What really bothers me is that this film doesn't look like real at all, it looks like staged through careful and meticulous editing. Although the director stated that it was all real, it is hard to believe that this film is real. Not to mention the stereotypes, as if teen life could be easily simplified by these characters (or people in this matter). It doesn't even bother to do a cross stereotype, like a successful nerd or a shy popular kid. It felt like a simple version of any MTV reality show, which doesnt feel real at all. Too bad, the documentary that could be a viewing window for adults to know what does teenland looks now, doesn't differ much from media hyped cliches.

3 DOA 3 CINTA (PESANTREN)

Directed by: Nurman Hakin
Starring: Nicholas Saputra, Dian Sastrowardoyo, Yoga Bagus Satatagama, Yoga Pratama

Having heard that this film screened in Pusan International Film Festival makes me interested. Apparantly my expectations is a bit too high. This is a coming-of-age tale about three Indonesian schoolboys living in "Pesantren" (Islamic Religious School) with religious and social issues as the side dish.

Actually I am perplexed about the choice of Nicholas Saputra and Dian Sastrowardoyo, two leading Indonesian movie stars, as if both of them was chosen for the sake of marketing, as for Dian, her screentime wasn't that much and only appears in the middle. Had this film didn't chose prominent actors, it can still tell a believable story. I guess the filmmaker try to capitalize the fact that most teen will watch this film solely on the name of Nico without even questioning the content. I can see that from the numbers of teens watching this film, most of them commenting on how cute Nico is or how funny some scenes are. Which left me wondering whether those teens could really understand what the film was all about.

Living in a pesantren in central Java, longtime friends Huda (Nicholas Saputra), Syahid (Yoga Bagus Satatagama) and Rian (Yoga Pratama) are living a modest and nice life. There they are in the crossroad of two religious teacher, the one teaches peace, the one chose the other way (you know what I mean).

Syahid buys "the other way" and transform himself throughout the film, Huda tries to seek his lost mother helped by Donna (Dian Sastrowardoyo), a dangdut singer with vague background and Rian wanted to be a filmmaker. As for characters, Syahid is the most three dimensional of all, while Rian only appears as a comic relief, even his conflict with his mother bear no result at all.

With humor and tackling some sensitive issues, this film manage to "explain" audience who knows nothing about Pesantren about the life and obstacles inside it. The editing is a bit choppy and you can notice that some of Huda's dialogue was poorly dubbed, especially when he speaks one or two sentence of Arabic language. Apart from that, the film could be trimmed few minutes and try tying some loose knots.

GRAN TORINO

Run time: 116 minutes
MPAA Rating: R for language throughout, and some violence

There's life in his grin, growl, wince and hiss, there's a lifetime of achievement spanning from the age where Kennedy was a U.S. President until Obama takes charge for the living American legend, Clint Eastwood.

One could be mistaken that Gran Torino is a 21st century Dirty Harry, but this is a complex story about sacrifice, love and redemption. One could also think this is as a metaphor for the dying American auto industry.

Walt Kowalski (Eastwood) is an unpleasant, loner, bigot Korean War vet with "racist" vocabulary, his wife just died and everything around him makes him irritated, his relationship with his sons isn't very good, the neighborhood he lives is no longer the picket fences white America, it is a melting pot for Asian, Blacks and Mexicans and gang disturbances.

After retiring from a 50 year old career in the auto industry, Walt lives alone with his dog, Walt lives in the 50s, and just like many vet, refuse to accept change.

Things doesn't get better as Thao (Bee Vang), a boy next door, attempts to steal Walt's precious 1972 Gran Torino as part of a gang initiation. He fails when Walt shows up with a shotgun. As the gang members try to "initiate" him for the second time, Walt Kowalski, the Dirty Harry version shows up with a shotgun and a piercing dialogue.

Then Walt become a reluctant hero of the neighborhood, a part he initially despise. His tough exterior is being defrosted by Thao's smart and spirited older sister, Sue (Ahney Her). And as a penance (or redemption as this film strongly emphasize), Thao works for Walt. As expected, cross generation budding starts and few laughs created, the Eastwoodian style. But problems doesn't end there, the gangs return with a bloody vengeance and Walt has to do things he believe is right.

This is film that feels utterly personal—a movie that might actually be as much about Clint Eastwood the man/myth/icon as it is, it is a strange but humble encore for his legendary career in the cinema, a reflection of his life and a notion that America is changing and last but not least, a revisit of his legendary image. This is 2008's finest film (sharing the top spot with The Dark Knight) and if Clint didn't nail Oscar nomination (or even the golden statue itself) then there is no justice at all.

I wish Clint keep making movies like this, to remind us, that watching film is not only an activity to kill time, but an activity to make you realize that life is worth living.

TROPA DE ELITE

MPAA Rating: R for strong violence, pervasive language and drug content.
Run time: 115 min

There's no doubt this film is well made. Police corruption and brutality, gangster shooting each other and two young Rio de Janeiro police officers fantasize implementing law and order in the city of gangsters.

The pope is visiting Rio de Janeiro and he needs a good night's sleep, so the local police commander sends Elite Squad to fix things up, including killing low life criminal.

Capt. Nascimento (Wagner Moura) is a captain of an Elite Squad with integrity and Kiefer Sutherland's 24 brutality, but the fact that his wife is pregnant driving him crazy. Nascimento wants someone to replace him, but who among the crowd of corrupt cops could replace him? Two rookies seem fit for the most stressing job, Neto (Caio Junqueira) and the idealist Matias (Andre Ramiro).

Those rookies start from the bottom, working at the police auto shop and witnessing on how cops steal car parts or go to law school and see the ignorance and delusional mind of rich students. As expected, both situation lead to dangerous consequence in the endless cycle of violence.

As these rookies undergo basic training for the elite squad, they realize that this squad is harder and more honest than most cops. After that, they have to invade the slum, and upheld the law, whatever that means.

Expect a vibrant camera work just like Cloverfield and GoodFellas style of violence and the drama of L.A. Confidential.

As an afterthought, I have to say, that after City of God, City of Men and Tropa de Elite, would these internationally acclaimed movies help Brazilian tourism?

ZACK AND MIRI MAKE A PORNO

Run time: 101 minutes.
MPAA Rating: R for strong crude sexual content including dialogue, graphic nudity and pervasive language.

Film makers try to put so many frames on romance, from sinking ship to war, but porn? That takes some serious effort and Kevin Smith (with interesting synergy with Judd Apatow) takes porn to a new level, especially the numbers of cursing and swearwords that match the casualties of Saving Private Ryan, the level of romance. Every dialogue contains the F, A, C, D and P word or its synonyms and said without remorse.

Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) are roommates and they have lived together for years, enduring poverty and their own attractions to each other, establishing a platonic relationship. Facing eviction, they have to spin their brain to make cash. After an unfortunate accident that sent Miri’s “granny panties” to the internet, they had a crazy idea, making their own amateur porn movie. So they enlist many of their friends, a list of quirky characters with dumbness and funny accent.

But having sex and making love, turns out to be a big difference on Zack and Miri, will they keep making porn and hide their jealousy as each of them was “scripted” to “bleep” somebody else in their porn movie.

In terms of visual vulgarity, this wasn’t as graphic as American Pie, Basic Instinct or the Jackass series, although it might make some squeamish people wince as Zack arrange the F, A, C and D word in just one breath, don’t even mention the profanity jokes which knows no boundary at all. By the way, after seeing this film you wish you never know what “Dutch rudder” is.