Invictus
(Starring Morgan Freeman, Matt Damon)
There are probably countless ways to tell the story of Nelson Mandela, his 27 years in a South African prison and his amazing rise to the presidency of his country. Clint Eastwood’s version, Invictus, centers on the 1995 World Rugby Cup, which Mandela utilized to evoke pride and patriotism. This legendary bout unified and inspired this deeply damaged country.
This historic leader is a role Freeman was simply meant to play. Damon is also perfect as the quiet rugby captain Francois Pienaar, who awkwardly tries to live up to Mandela’s example.
More importantly, Eastwood uses every sports film cliché, but in really affecting and unexpected ways. Imagine any other flick where a team could be motivated by visiting the cramped cell where the president was unfairly imprisoned for nearly three decades.
Could Eastwood’s movie have shown even more about Mandela’s life and his suffering? Maybe, but then Invictus wouldn’t also be this uplifting story about perseverance and forgiveness, an accessible but unique sports flick exemplifying the heroic struggle of pushing forward.
Brothers
(Starring Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Sam Shepard)
Brothers is almost one of the best films of the year, if it’d only had the courage to make its audience uncomfortable.
Maguire is a soldier bound for Afghanistan, but first he has to pick up younger brother Gyllenhaal from prison. When it looks as if Maguire has been killed in battle, Gyllenhaal steps in to help widow Portman and her two kids through the grief.
Director Jim Sheridan (My Left Foot) has a supreme gift with actors. Everyone here gives Oscar-worthy performances. In the end, however, the actors are hampered, because this melodrama refuses to leave any tension unresolved.
We clearly understand both brothers have trouble discussing their feelings because of their frigid dad (a very stoic Shepard). We know that Maguire has survived unspeakable things, because we witness his torture. It’s also obvious Gyllenhaal loves and admires his brother, and the soldier’s apparent death compels Gyllenhaal to become a better person. In short, Brothers gives us absolutely nothing to ponder afterwards, rendering this mostly wonderful film slightly blander than it needs to be.
Up in the Air
(Starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, Jason Bateman)
Of all Clooney’s characters, this one flies closest to the man he’s portrayed to be in tabloids—a charming, handsome, but terminally adolescent playboy.
Clooney is a Midwestern consultant brought in by companies to fire people. He relishes the emotional detachment allowed by his job and all of its air travel; his goal is to someday reach 10 million frequent flier miles. When his own company goes digital, the lothario faces either being permanently grounded or training his tech-savvy replacement (Kendrick). As he travels, he has a casual affair with a fellow traveler (Farmiga) and does his damnedest to avoid his family.
Director/co-writer Jason Reitman (Juno) is brilliant at tying Clooney’s work to our country’s current economy without killing this light comedy. Furthermore, each performance is buoyed by Reitman’s natural approach to storytelling.
However, the clever flick misses a connection. It never explains why Clooney’s character vehemently eschews emotional involvement. Because this is the single most prominent aspect of the protagonist’s personality, the engaging Up in the Air leaves us dangling.
The Princess and the Frog
(Voices of Anika Noni Rose, Oprah Winfrey, John Goodman)
In this vivid and expanded reinvention of the classic fairy tale, Disney recaptures hand-drawn animation. Ironically, it’s the first film under the complete leadership of John Lasseter, whose computer-animation company Pixar (Finding Nemo, the Toy Story series) has been keeping Disney animation afloat.
This time the amphibious love story is set in 1920s New Orleans replete with voodoo magic and social disparities. Here the cursed prince kisses a poor girl dressed as a princess. It’s a fun complication told with a lively Mardi Gras theme. Overall, the story overflows with wit and charm.
To nitpick, I’d point out that the one thing lacking—that vital element Lasseter brought to his Pixar films—is depth. TP&TF is kept frustratingly light, comedic and meaningless for the sake of the kiddies. Instead of handling death in an artful way (like in the first minutes of Up), a couple parents croak, and we only find out later. Other parents totally disown their kid, and we are meant not to care why. Throughout TP&TF, emotional resonance is subjugated by slapstick humor shallower than a brackish swamp.
It’s the one misstep is a joyous film I still plan on seeing again.
