Movie Time

Last week I went to see the new Woody Allen film, Match Point. I've been a big fan of Woody Allen's films for about 9 years now. I think it's amazing how he turns out a film every year, even though I will concede that most of his recent efforts have been kind of spotty. I have found something to enjoy in most of them, however, although I thought that Hollywood Ending was atrocious. That is the one film of his that I refused to buy on DVD. I feel that Sweet and Lowdown is the best of his recent efforts. Match Point has gotten a lot of positive press and has been touted as a return to form. Initially, I was really blown away by it. I think the performances are really good, and the fact that it's set in London provided a refreshing change from the usual New York location. The more I got to thinking, though, something emerged that did bother me. The plot is very similar to Crimes and Misdemeanors, which is one of the best Woody films there is. I guess if you're going to rip someone off, who better than yourself? So, while I think Match Point is an excellent film worth watching, I have to deduct some points for not being entirely original.

Another movie that I watched recently (along with Holli) was Grizzly Man. This movie has received very good reviews and I've been wanting to see it for months now. It is a documentary about the guy (Timothy Treadwell) who would go to Alaska every year and hang out in the wild with grizzly bears. He went on 13 such 'expeditions' before being killed and eaten by a bear a few years ago. I think he thought that he was doing something positive by bringing attention to the fact that bears are endangered, but after seeing this film I have to say that I don't think what he was doing was really in the best interest of the bears. I think it's possible to bring attention to them without conditioning them to be comfortable around humans. I'm sure for him it was a very powerful experience to feel like he was a 'bear' in some ways, and I think that would be a really amazing feeling to have, but it seems kind of selfish. He also seemed to be pretty naive in a lot of ways about how nature works. I will say that the footage that Timothy Treadwell shot is pretty amazing to watch (at least the footage that doesn't include himself). And I will also say that Andy Dick is a shoe-in to play him in the musical.