Velvet Goldmine ~ 1998 ~ Ewan McGregor, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Christian Bale

I am a big fan of Ewan and Christian, and how I came about this movie is actually quite funny. I was on weheartit.com, which I am a total junkie of, and searching for some pictures of Ewan McGregor. Then I started seeing these pictures of him in bed with another man. I immediately scrambled over to imdb.com because I knew I HAD to see this movie. I came to learn that the movie was Velvet Goldmine, a movie that examines the rise and self-inflicted fall of a glamrock superstar.  When one of my friends explained to me that Ewan McGregor wears tiny leather pants, rips them off, pours oil and glitter over himself AND kisses glamrocker men, little more was needed to convince me to watch it IMMEDIATELY.

I wasn’t disappointed.  Although there is some confusing subplot and some dizzying flashbacks, the movie was beautiful to watch.  All three of the male leads shone, as did Toni Collette who played character Brian Slade’s (Jonathan Rhys Meyers, pictured above in all of his glory) wife.  It’s actually very hard to describe all of my feelings about this movie because it was so multifaceted.  That sounds like a cop-out, but it’s true: the relationships and romance between the men, the examination of desired and then unwanted stardom, the evolution of the music world during the glamrock era, and it’s subsequent listening generation – there’s just a lot going on.

The underlying current of destruction of greatness is intoxicating in this movie, and I found myself wanting to know more about all of the characters, more of their past and future – I’m pretty sure that’s the sign of a really fucking successful movie.

My conclusion: Watch it. Yesterday.

Paper Heart ~ 2009 ~ Michael Cera, Charlyne Yi

I watched Paper Heart this evening, and what I was certain was going to be a self-righteous indie movie was actually quite endearing.  The movie was made to mirror a ‘real’ documentary being filmed, and for the most part, it did retain that feel.  Charlyne’s unique personality felt cold at times, but I think that was necessary for her character who wasn’t sure if she was capable of being in love.  Michael, cursed with his every word being painfully adorkable, pleasantly surprised me by not always being the large-eyed puppy dog who will happily vomit love at every turn.  He felt like how a nice guy does in real life.

One of my favorite aspects of this movie, to which the title nods to, is the cut scenes of stop-action animation paper people.  As Charlyne interviews different couples who have ‘found love’, some of their most significant stories are illustrated through these animations.  They are delightful to watch, and actually, make the story being told far more memorable and seemingly significant than if it had been done by real-person actors.

The indie feel, the beauty of the filming, and the exploration into peoples personalities and the mystery of love all add to it’s merits.

My conclusion:  Watch it.

What this is going to be all bouty-bout.

This is going to be me blogging my non-professional opinions and reviews on movies that I see, both new releases and older titles. I’ll probably add in other shit that I enjoy as well. Like these pictures.

Girl, Interrupted I enjoy the movie and Winona Ryder immensely. 

Donnie Darko A favorite of mine. 

How to Be Although I am indeed painfully in love with Robert Pattinson, this is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen.