Thank You for Smoking

After watching Juno, I wanted to check out what else director Jason Reitman had done. He has not only directed but also written the screenplay for Thank You for Smoking (adapted from a novel by Christopher Buckley).

The film has a rather odd theme: Nick Naylor, the “hero” of this story is the spokesman of the tobacco industry, and the villain is a Senator who tries to get the world to be a smoke-free zone. Over the course of the film, Nick discovers why he is doing this job and how he feels about promoting cigarettes.

The film is quite funny but not ground-breakingly so. I am not sure what exactly it wants to say, because it is advertising smoking (in a sarcastic sort of way, but still doing so) and the protagonist never really has the epiphany that what he is doing is actually a really bad thing and he should stop. Well, to be fair, he does realize this but he never really gets it. If you happen to come across the DVD it might be interesting to watch the film, because it is quite different, but I wouldn’t advise you to go out of your way to get it…

Little Children

Since Kate Winslet is one of my favourite actresses (well, actually my all-time favourite) I have watched pretty much every film she is in. Here she plays a bored suburban mother who finds herself living in a strange big house, married to the wrong man and spending her time with her daughter whom she doesn’t really care for. She can’t connect to the other mothers at the playground and is fairly miserable until one day the handsome stay-at-home father (Patrick Wilson) shows up and turns her life upside down. There are other characters, such as a pedophile who has exposed himself to minors and is now facing the consequences for it.

Adapted from the book Little Children (Tom Perrotta) by actor/director Todd Field (Eyes Wide Shut) this film is a masterpiece of tragedy. Everyone in the story is leading a depressing life and even though there are some ups, the poor characters don’t get to be happy in the end. Nevertheless it is a very thought-provoking and complex film, using some black humour so as not get over-dramatic. The actors are remarkable. Kate Winslet manages to not make her character seem too desperate, but rather unluckily misplaced. It is really worth watching this film.

Bridget Jones’s Diary

This is an absolutely fabulous British comedy, which has quickly become a classic such as Notting Hill or Four Weddings and a Funeral. Another film which has been adapted from a book (a really great one as such, written by Helen Fielding), which in turn has been adapted and turned into a modern story from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Bridget is a fairly average British woman, slightly overweight, liking her alcohol, single and unhappy about it.

Anyone who hasn’t seen this film (are there still some people left?) should go out tonight and get the DVD. It really is a lot of fun. Poor Bridget (Renée Zellweger) is utterly clueless about life, falling for the wrong guy (Hugh Grant in a brilliant role) until she finally finds her Mister Right (Mark Darcy, played by the gorgeous Colin Firth who was Mr. Darcy in the BBC’s Pride and Prejudice). She is determined to improve her life by starting a diary but of course she can’t really turn herself around. It is a real delight to watch her misfortunes!

Bienvenue chez les Ch’tis (Welcome to the Sticks)

Apparently this film has set new viewing records in France. Directed, produced and acted (in the main role) by Dany Boon this is a comedy about a post office administrator who (after doing something stupid) gets transferred to the North of France. The audience learns quickly that the North is a really bad place: people are only forced to go there as punishment. Boon’s character leaves his depressed wife and child behind in the warm South. Once he gets to the North things turn out to be quite the contrary to his expectations: it is not freezing and the people are actually really nice!

I am sure this is a very funny film in the original, it does not, however, work well in translation. The people up North have a peculiar accent which I am sure is hilarious. In the dubbed version (at least in the German one) the accent is completely made up and sounds utterly ridiculous. It turns the comedy into slapstick, which ruins it. Other than that the characters are sweet and the story is strange but amusing.

Bridget Jones’s Diary and Little Children are being awarded the MovieCat Award for being two outstandingly well-made films (even though mentioned in the same sentence, they are, of course, great for completely different reasons).