Movies 2011, Week 37

September 18-24, 2011
I love movies more and more every week!  That's good since I'm in the biz, huh?  LOL
162) The Tillman Story. A documentary about the lies told in the wake of the death of former NFL player Pat Tillman and its impact on his family.  Really awesome  and thorough documentary.  Great access to the family and some military insight.  Oddly, I vividly remember hearing he had died.  I was in the cafeteria at Hampton.  I also remember not being surprised to later hear it was a cover-up.  Extremely emotional film.  I thoroughly enjoyed it.  4.5 stars
163) Win Win. Film starring Paul Giamatti and Amy Ryan about an attorney/wrestling coach who becomes an elderly man's guardian then finds out the man has a wrestling prodigy for a grandson.  I wish this film was a little shorter and had a less obvious ending.  It took the route a lot of indie films do today of setting up a unique or interesting set of obstacles, then giving it a Hollywood-like ending.  True it wasn't necessarily the happiest but it was tidy, which weakened the film overall.  3.4 stars
164) Out of the Past. Kirk Douglas stars in this 1947 film noir classic about a private investigator, a gorgeous girl and a mobster out to find her.  I really enjoyed it!  Noirs get my vote so often because they don't follow expected, happy timelines.  Pretty great.  4 stars
165) The Blind Side. Sandra Bullock stars as the family matriarch of a white family that adopts a giant homeless black kid.  At the beginning, it was like the scriptwriter couldn't overcome those white savior movie tendencies.  It was eye roll-inducing but got much better when it just became a story about a mother trying to do the right thing. There were still some hokey, ridiculous moments but overall, much better than I expected. 4 stars
166) Who Are the DeBolts? And Where Did They Get Nineteen Kids. Academy Award-winning documentary about the struggles and triumphs of a California couple who had and adopted children, some with severe physical handicaps.  The film is clearly from 1977 as evidenced by its over-reliance on sometimes trite narration but the story is told very well.  It's not overly sad or emotional, but shows the reality of this family's life.  The crews followed long enough to have some transformations for some of the kids and show some controversy.  3.7 stars
167) Medicine for Melancholy. Wyatt Cenac stars in this black indie film about two people who awake from a one-night stand they don't remember and wander the streets of San Francisco trying to figure each other out and what exactly they're doing together.  Interesting, if slow at times.  I can't necessarily say I was satisfied at the end, either.  I wasn't dissatisfied.  This movie, like many indie hipster movies, just was.  3.5 stars