O Meri Chandni

A woman caught between 2 men, one passionate and proud, the other solitary and solemn.

It's a story about whether common sense will trump true love and, as it usually is, the answer is no. Chandni stars Sridevi, Rishi Kapoor, Vinod Khanna, Waheeda Rehman, Anupam Kher and Sushma Seth and it is the Yash Chopra movie that brought back the Yash Chopra formula after a decade of mindless action movies.

The movie is full of melodious songs and stunning cinematography. Sridevi performs one of her most iconic dance numbers, the catchy and unforgettable "Mere haathon mein"

If that song didn't define Sridevi's career as an actress and dancer, I don't know which one did (actually, it was probably this one).

Chandni (Sridevi, beautiful, charming and empathetic as ever) is a simple middle-class girl (read: she dances, sings, makes jokes) who is being courted by the rich Rohit (Kapoor). You know he's really in love with her because he snaps photos of her all the time and his walls are covered with them. In this country and century, Chandni would be calling the police (or at least Laura Mulvey) but this is Yash Chopra's Delhi in the 80s and so it is romantic. Maybe I just don't see Rishi Kapoor as a romantic hero. I wonder if I'd feel as weird if it were Anil Kapoor or Hrithik Roshan romancing Chandni.

Anyway, Chandni in turn falls in love with him and that's swell. Except Rohit's family (well, his parents and sister--Sushma Seth plays an earlier version of Lajjo from Kal Ho Naa Ho) despise Chandni's upbringing (she dances, sings and makes jokes) and decide she only loves Rohit for his money. (Naturally, Chandni doesn't even think of his money or if she does, she sees it as a happy bonus). Disaster strikes and Rohit falls from a helicopter when trying to shower Chandni with rose petals (???) and the family blames Chandni. Only Rohit's jijaji (Anupam Kher) sticks up for her. Chandni takes care of Rohit when he is wheelchair-bound but the family torments the poor girl until finally Rohit himself throws her out.

Chandni "shifts" to Bombay, looking to move on and start a new life. I was like rock on, Chandni. I mean who wants to marry a guy with an evil family? She starts working for Lalit (Vinod Khanna) at his travel agency. Lalit himself is a grieving man, looking to forget the past (his dead lover is played by Juhi Chawla in a cameo so his pain is easy to understand).

Lalit sees Chandni as a kindred spirit (little does he know how awesome Happy Chandni is!) and she too is somewhat charmed by his subdued demeanor. He sings beautifully sad songs in the rain. And his mom is played by Waheeda Rehman (whose beauty is as angelic as her character) so that's another point in Lalit's favor.

Eventually, Lalit proposes to Chandni and she sort of accepts. Rohit and Lalit meet in Switzerland (Lalit's there for business and Rohit found a doctor/wizard to fix his handicap) and become friends. Rohit comes back to Chandni and freaks out when he finds out she's engaged. I was sort of expecting Chandni to give a strong speech about having her own life and how he done her wrong. But her dialogues in this scene are minimal and not very strong.

So when it comes time for Chandni to choose between Lalit and Rohit? Well, the men sort of make that decision for her. I guess, sure, she never stopped loving Rohit but would any real person choose to marry into a family who doesn't enjoy comic dance numbers like this?

You can literally feel the flop sweat! Know your audience, Chandni, seriously. By the way, the pretty woman who starts the song is Kiren, Chandni's BFF. I love her because she always says what the audience is thinking. For example, we want Sridevi to dance and she gets her to!

The thing is, Rohit might be Chandni's love but his parents and sister are evil, he threw her out and didn't even apologize. Lalit has freaking Waheeda Rehman as his mother and will love her in a way Rohit is too childish to understand. I feel like Rohit sees Chandni as a possession; the title song is "Chandni, o meri Chandni..."

I wonder if Yash Chopra intended for us to root for Chandni and Rohit or if he intended to show that love is irrational and crazy. I guess in most cinematic love triangles love triumphs over common sense so I shouldn't be surprised.

But the last 15 minutes don't spoil the wonderful movie that precedes it. Chandni is a less than perfect movie with a terrific central performance, some everlasting songs and a beautiful look to it.

But that ending...

Psychotic Love or Marital Cage: A Woman's Dilemma

Darr is a classic Yash Chopra movie to be sure, a staple of the era before Shah Rukh Khan became King Khan and when Juhi Chawla was just beginning her glorious star career. Darr is a particularly strange movie coming from director Yash Chopra; the man is famous for his passionate love tales, peppered with Hindustani wholesomeness and picturesque love songs. Darr is a love story (its subtitle actually claims that it is a "violent love story") but it's also a psychological thriller.

Well, a psychological thriller that runs 3 hours, has 3 love songs, co-stars Anupam Kher and Tanvi Azmi as comic relief and features two gratuitous dance numbers of both Holi and wedding. Nowadays this movie would probably run 130 minutes and have only some songs set in the background. Perhaps some famous actress would do a half-ironic item song sung by Sunidhi Chauhan.

Before I get into my analysis, let me just run through the plot.

Rahul (Khan) is a young college student, obsessively enamored of Kiren (Chawla), his classmate. He sings "Jaadu teri nazar" to her, which at first is romantic but becomes quite frightening as the film goes on. Kiren, on the other hand, is in love with naval officer Sunil (Sunny Deol, all brawn and little brains). Rahul calls and taunts and frightens Kiren, despite her begging to be left alone. When Rahul spots Kiren with Sunil, he goes off the deep end and his stalking of Kiren becomes more psychotic and dangerous. Kiren and Sunil continue with their marriage plans but try to fend off Rahul's attacks.

This being Bollywood in the early 90s, Rahul's fate is pretty much sealed by his first appearance. Sunny Deol, after his successes in Damini and Vishwatma, was a bigger star than Khan so you pretty much know who is going to be alive at the end of the movie.

Quite unsurprisingly, the 3 leads fit quite well into their roles as Hero, Damsel in Distress and Villain. Throughout the entire film, Kiren is in constant need of protection and her attempts to protect Sunil are met with declarations of his duty to protect her. "I don't care if I die, I just can't see you getting hurt" is a line she says several times. I can't decide if that line is the script keeping Kiren into a cage of helplessness or pointing out that Kiren isn't helpless but is forced to be by her macho husband. In their final scene before the intermission, Kiren offers to move away to both be free of Rahul's torments and protect Sunil from getting hurt again. He rejects the idea, keeping her in his protection but also in harm's way.

Kiren needs to escape Rahul's figurative clutches but does she also need to escape Sunil's literal ones?

I would expect this interpretation of Darr is a radical one. Sunny Deol is an action hero and his romance with Chawla is protrayed as romantic and innocent. Their two love songs ("Likha hai yeh inn hawaaon pe" and "Darwaaza bandh karlo") are frothy and sweet as opposed to the voyeuristic "Tu mere saamne," not to mention this psychosexual dream sequence:

Chopra definitely has us participate in Rahul's obsession with Kiren. It's a credit to Chawla's strength as an actress that Kiren has any real human personality. She's either being leered at or tormented by Rahul or running into the protective arms of Sunil. The poor woman doesn't even get to kill her torturer--that is the man's job. That would have been a great character moment for Kiren. Fine, she has to be protected but when it's kill or be killed, she can help herself. This ending of Sunil coming to her rescue after a (rather brutal) fight with Rahul is an almost cheap way for Deol to fulfill his duties as action star.

(Rumor has it that Aamir Khan was offered the part of Rahul but objected to the fact that Sunil, not Kiren, kills Rahul. I don't know how that true that is because it's an almost 20 year old rumor I read on an IMDb message board but I'd sooner believe it than doubt it.)

Let's not forget the fact that Sunil has a habit of scaring Kiren. First he jumps out of her closet. But then later he hides in the pool and grabs her ankle as she tries to get out. This second scene is really disturbing because it goes on for a long time. We are really meant to think Rahul is attacking her.

Is Sunil trying to scare Kiren into submission? The "star constraints" (what I call it when an actor's status foreshadows their fate in the movie) don't really allow for a full exploration of this idea. We're supposed to feel reassured by Sunil's protections;.

But I can't shake off the feeling that Kiren is unfortunately stuck between a "Rukh" and a hard body. Yash Chopra, though he never really was a true feminist director, always told very fascinating female stories like Chandni, Lamhe and Dil To Pagal Hai (his most feminist film, kind of). Even Veer-Zaara is very woman-oriented.

After a while, Darr turns into a tug-of-war between Rahul and Sunil with Kiren stuck in the middle; this is especially true once Sunil figures out that the guy he sort of became friends with is actually Rahul pretending not to be crazy. Kiren doesn't even get to piece together that Rahul is the stalker! It bears repeating that the only reason Kiren resembles a human being at all is because Juhi Chawla breathes life into all her scenes.

I should mention that I'm not at all surprised that a psychological thriller from 1990s Bollywood is so masculine. Darr still remains one of that era's most daring films and it is very successful in establishing a sense of dread and paranoia even when indulging in a dance number like this:

You just know Kiren's marital bliss is not long for the world.

I liked Darr quite a bit, even with its old-school gender politics. I guess I was hoping that this movie, already such a game-changer for Bollywood, would raise the bar and allow its heroine to be, well, more heroic than usual.

The Hot Shots of 2011

As the year comes to a close, let's take a look back at the people who had a very successful year in 2011.

In alphabetical order:

Woody Allen

After two slightly mediocre pictures, the master of neuroses bounced back with his loving ode to France's capital, Midnight in Paris. Not only was Paris Allen's biggest box office hit ever but it could possibly be his first Best Screenplay nominee since 2005's Match Point. Paris was definitely indicative that Allen's still got it.

Pedro Almodovar

Almodovar was another director who bounced back with another film The Skin I Live In. In 2009, he released Broken Embraces, a noirish melodrama that I loved but wasn't the critical darling Skin is. The film is a rape-revenge horror film that is as twisted as it is tragically romantic. Hopefully next month Almodovar find his film a Best Foreign Language Film nominee.

Jessica Chastain

Starring in diverse films like The Help, The Debt and The Tree of Life, Chastain randomly came into the spotlight as an acting force to be reckoned with. I have no idea where she came from but she has received some recognition for her work. She is even in the running for an Oscar nomination for her work in The Help (very much deservedly, in my opinion).

Dan, Emma & Rupert

The Harry Potter film series came to a close with the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. While I personally found the film to be too rushed, fault cannot be found with the main trio. They really brought their A game and their onscreen chemistry reinforced why the series is so popular. They're normal and realistic, despite their extraordinary circumstances.

Viola Davis

This two time Tony winner and Oscar nominee is back in the Oscar spotlight for her fearless and empathetic performance as Aibileen in The Help. I'm hoping this major attention will bring more roles to Davis, who unfortunately gets sidelined into supporting roles (her Oscar nomination was for a single but still effective scene in Doubt). It doesn't hurt that The Help was a strong movie and a financial success.

Zooey Deschanel

When Zooey D was confimed for the sitcom New Girl, well, people were a little skeptical. Deschanel, who is famous for her adorably nerdy screen persona, isn't exactly an actress who one would think could sustain her own TV show. But Zooey D proved them all wrong as New Girl was a critical and popular victory. And who couldn't love that silky voice?

Michael Fassbender

Many actors probably dream about the year that Mike Fassbender had in 2011 but few actors actually have it with success. Fassbender won over hard-to-please Bronte fans in Jane Eyre, excited superhero geeks in X-Men First Class, bared himself physically and emotionally in Shame, and navigated the mazes of the mind as Carl Jung in A Dangerous Method. And yet he left us wanting more.

Ryan Gosling

With Drive, The Ides of March and Crazy Stupid Love, Gosling released three films that are diverse and interesting. The pick of the lot is Drive, the melodrama that occasionally exploded in graphic violence. I think Crazy Stupid Love is an intelligent romantic-comedy that showcases Gosling's lighter side. In 2011, Gosling has proved himself to be a versatile and interesting actor with a bright future.

Martin Scorsese

When every other movie is released in poorly converted, overpriced 3D, it took a real auteur with a gift for visual storytelling to be the first one to utilize correctly the technology since 2009's Avatar. Hugo was Scorsese's love letter to the origins of cinema and a child's exploration of his own past. The film was a visual delight, a treat for those who love movies like Scorsese does.

Emma Stone

In an era when young actresses rarely get any meaty roles. Emma Stone has provided some intelligent, three-dimensional characters for the audience to love. Stone has starred in two remarkable movies and had a memorable cameo in another (Crazy Stupid Love, The Help and Friends with Benefits respectively). Emma Stone is one of those rare actors who, like Meryl Streep, Tina Fey and Steve Martin, are probably as cool as they seem on the screen.

Kristen Wiig, Melissa McCarthy & the Bridesmaids team

This summer saw a full on runaway hit with Bridesmaids, a hilarious and insightful look at the ups and downs in female friendship. Star and co-writer Kristen Wiig delivered a lead performance that was both incredibly funny and refreshingly honest. McCarthy became the year's breakout star, giving her character Megan the right balance between outrageous humor and emotuonal depth. Bridesmaids was definitely the comedy of the year.

Dear Alfred Hitchcock, please forgive me.

Dear Alfred Hitchcock, please forgive me.

But when I last saw the masterpiece Vertigo, I noticed some similarities to the young adult vampire franchise, Twilight.

(I just shuddered writing that.)

If you look at the characters of Judy Barton (Kim Novak) and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart), they seem to have similar goals. They want to be "changed" by their lovers, Scottie Ferguson (James Stewart) and Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) respectively, as a way to fully get acceptance and affection. Judy lets herself be transformed into Madeleine and Bella begs Edward to change her into a vampire. These women believe the transformations will be the final step to uniting them with their male counterparts.

Feminist critics probably read Judy and Bella the same way; they both lack a personality of their own (Judy abandons hers for Scottie's memory of Madeleine while Bells never really had one to begin with). Neither character is really a healthy role model for children of any age. But there's a reason why I would happily let my kids watch Vertigo while I cringe at my mind's image of future kids viewing/reading the Twilight series.

And the reason lies in the characters of Scottie and Edward (and Jacob Black by extension) themselves.

While Judy is a weak character, it must be remembered that Scottie too is a weak character. Their bizarre, psychosexual relationship is toxic on both ends. Scottie is so crazy that he cannot see Judy for herself but only as Madeleine. His labored attempts to change Judy into Madeleine (when buying for Judy the grey suit that Madeleine wore, the sales clerk mentions twice that he "really knows what he wants") can be seen as him indulging in his deranged love for Madeleine.

In the famous scene where Judy emerges, metamorphosis complete, from the bathroom as Madeleine, it's not entirely sure if Scottie (and the audience also) is seeing Judy-as-Madeleine or Madeleine herself. The foggy air and ethereal music suggest a ghostly presence. When Scottie kisses Judy in that beautifully-filmed rotation kiss, does he even know he's kissing "another woman" or in his mind, is he actually kissing Madeleine?

Even before Judy comes into the picture, Scottie is far from a masculine ideal. For one thing, Scottie is a boy's name, not something you would call a grown man. Also, in the scene where Scottie tries to overcome his vertigo in Midge's apartment with a step-stool, he very effeminately faints into Midge's arms:

In the trial scene after Madeleine's death, Scottie is rather mercilessly emasculated by the judge. He is constantly reminded of his own weakness and failure to save Madeleine. In one scene, Madeleine jumps into the bay in a trance, Scottie saves her. Madeleine then tells Scottie, "The whole thing must have been rather embarrassing for you." Well, that line applies to the entire movie.

By contrast, Edward Cullen is depicted as a masculine ideal. He's handsome and strong and "dazzling." Bella seems him as an ideal romantic partner and her attempts to be changed by him are an attempt to be completely loved by him (like Judy). But the problem is, the audience too is expected to see Edward as Bella does. The audience knows that Judy and Scottie should stay away from each other and their onscreen love is twisted and paranoid.

But the Edward-Bella love story is free of any such psychodrama. Bella is a pretty normal high school girl (as normal as any high school kid can be) and Edward (and his isolationist lifestyle) is a ticket away from all that. That's what makes Twilight so scary; this sort of idealized romance suggests that the couple hide from the world. That's not exactly something I want my fourteen-year-old daughter or son to be thinking.

I know some Twilight fans don't see Edward as the perfect mate. But don't even get me started on Jacob Black. While Bella is described as delicate and is consistently infantilized (sitting on laps, piggy back rides, etc.), Jacob is a gigantic pile of brutish masculinity. Impossibly muscular and impulsively hot-headed, Jacob is basically Stanley Kowalski.

But without Tennessee Williams' words and Marlon Brando's talent. And Stanley is not seen as an ideal love interest.

While Twilight and Vertigo have similar female characters, their male characters are protrayed differently. Vertigo is a psychodramatic love story which should be populated by weak and twisted characters. But Twilight doesn't ever reach the suspenseful heights that Vertigo does. I don't even think it wants to. But its somewhat normalcy is what makes it such a dangerous pop culture enterprise.

Invasion of the Body Switchers

The premise of The Change-Up is not original. I mean, huge shocker, right? You have Freaky Friday, 17 Again, Hot Chicks, just to name a few.

But what separates The Change-Up from those movies is its tongue-in-cheek tone, wicked good performances and a script that is delightfully irreverent. Starring Jason Bateman, Ryan Reynolds, Leslie Mann, Olivia Wilde and Alan Arkin, The Change-Up is directed by David Dobkin (Wedding Crashers) and from a script by Jon Lucas and Scott Moore (the duo behind The Hangover).

Dave (Bateman) is a hard-working lawyer in a too comfortable marriage with Jamie (Mann) with three kids. His best friend is Mitch (Reynolds), a struggling actor with an active but empty sex life and a swank apartment. One night, they get drunk and express their mutual jealousy of the other's life. They pee in a fountain and exclaim "I wish I had your life!" and somehow switch bodies.

That's the premise but the movie goes way beyond that. Mitch, in Dave's body, has to find a way to balance Dave's career, kids and marriage. Meanwhile, Dave, in Mitch's body, gets to experience the single life but it may not be a glamorous as it looks. I was worried that this movie would glorify Mitch's life with hot and willing women while undermining the joys of having a family.

But what's interesting about The Change-Up is that it allows for both Mitch and Dave to see both the best and worst parts of each other's lives. Sure, fatherhood is tough for but it can also be very rewarding. Mitch can pursue a relationship with Dave's gorgeous/mesmerizing colleague Sabrina (Wilde) but there never is any food in the fridge. This script didn't really show a preference for either lifestyle. Dave's marriage is a rocky as Mitch's relationship with his father (Arkin, reliable as always). I think that's what I like best about this movie.

I wish more screen-time and jokes were handed to Olivia Wilde's Sabrina. Wilde looks gorgeous and her acting is quite natural and charismatic. But not much character development is given to her. Although her ending up with Mitch was kind of expected, at least they showed her to be compatible with him instead of just hoping the audience will buy it.

Conversely, a lot of care went into developing Dave and Jamie's marriage. As seen with Wilde and other heroines of the raunchy comedy, women can sometimes get short-changed in the genre (a trend that is on its way out) but Mann not only gets some of the best lines (and knocks them out of the park like she always does) but she is the most empathetic character. Mann has the ability to throw these wild lines that come out of nowhere and her deadpan style is just awesome.

Ryan Reynolds is fantastic in this movie. What's interesting about his performance is that he is really playing against type. Usually he's the smarmy, suave Peter Pan-type but when he plays Dave in Mitch's body, he really shows his range.

Jason Bateman, to be frank, is BRILLIANT. His performance in this movie is proof of why he's one of the best comic actors working today. When he plays Mitch as Dave, it is unlike anything he's ever done. Whether it's the physical comedy or the banter, he really nails every scene.

A lot of critics complained about the raunchy humor in this movie but I didn't find it to be any more extreme as others in the genre. What separates this movie from others is its highly irreverent tone. That word gets thrown around a lot but this movie takes it to another level. The babies in the kitchen scene is so funny yet so wrong. The scene with Mitch's sex friend Tatiana is almost sick but I found myself laughing without shame. Maybe it's because I'm a guy in my 20s but I enjoy "oh, no, they didn't!" humor in comedies. What's the point of even having an envelope if you can't push it?!

Critics be damned, I thought The Change-Up was a perfectly enjoyable summer comedy with the right amount of heart and raunchiness. With a bravura performance from Jason Bateman (I'm hoping for a Golden Globe nomination unless Depp and Jolie have another comedy-thriller coming out), The Change-Up is yet another winner for 2010's summer comedy lineup.

The Change-Up: B+

And just for fun, another picture of Olivia Wilde:

Love and All That Nonsense

Crazy Stupid Love will probably get lumped into the much maligned genre of romantic-comedy. But actually it is a comedy about romance. That sounds like a nonsense statement but it isn't. Not only does Crazy Stupid Love take romance seriously in a way that movies nowadays rarely do but it also finds comedy in romantic situations both glorious and heartbreaking. The results are refreshing and Crazy Stupid Love can be added to lists of the best romantic-comedies ever.

The film stars Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone and features Kevin Bacon, Analeigh Tipton (who placed 3rd on America's Next Top Model), young actor Jonah Bobo and the amazing Marisa Tomei in supporting roles. The movie was written by Dan Fogleman (best known for writing Tangled and Cars) and directed by the duo of Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (the little seen I Love You, Philip Morris).

Cal (Carell) and Emily (Moore) are a couple whose marriage hits a dead end after Emily admits to sleeping with David (Bacon). Newly divorced, Cal finds himself back in the singles' game and not knowing any of the rules. That's when he meets suave playboy Jacob (Gosling), who takes him under his wing Hitch-style. Cal has a small fling with foxy teacher Kate (Tomei) but soon realizes that the love of his life is Emily. Jacob, on the other hand, tries his game on Hannah (Stone) but she shakes his confidence by rejecting him and now he can't get her out of his head. While all of this happening, Cal and Emily's wise-beyond-his-years son Robbie (Bobo) has a full-blown crush on his older babysitter Jessica (Tipton). But Jessica has a crush of her own...Cal.

This ensemble comedy is one part comedy of remarriage, one part reformed playboy comedy and one part awkward teenage romance. In lesser hands, all these characters and subplots would seem superfluous and confusing. But the movie manages to balance everything out, giving each plot the attention it deserves. There is also a balance of despair and farce, which can be a pretty tricky thing to pull off; you don't want to undermine the sentiment with too many jokes nor do you want to halt the comic momentum with mopey drama. Crazy Stupid Love manages to shift its tone with a fabulous ease.

For example, my favorite scene in the movie is the parent-teacher conference sequence. It starts with Cal and Emily sitting on opposite sides of a door, close to each other physically but miles apart emotionally. Moore and Carell play this scene so realistically and effortlessly that if someone had told me they were married in real life, I might actually believe them. This moment is quite heartfelt with a few jokes. Then a surprise comes and the scene shifts to high farce but even that's loaded with an undercurrent of tragedy. And then the scene shifts again as Cal and Emily finally have the confrontation they needed to have. I mean it is absolutely beautiful this scene. I don't even want to think about what it would have been like with a less talented set of actors (my hatred of spoilers will not let me reveal the name of the sequence's most surprising performer) and with a creative team less confident of their material.

And that's the engine that drives this movie to its splendid destination: confidence. In a movie where the phrase "soul mate" is said about 15 times (most of which spoken by a teenage boy), the film had to be sure of itself to sell it sans melodrama.

Crazy Stupid Love is glorious and grand, epic and emotional. It's full of intimate confessions and monumental declarations of love. The movie is dripping with "if only the real world were like this!" There isn't a mean-spirited bone in its body. Even David, Emily's seducer, isn't some emasculating monster but a man genuinely in love with a married woman. The romance between Robbie and Jessica isn't some "hot for babysitter" Playboy letter but a tender yet ultimately ill-fated love story.

Emma Stone, one of Hollywood's top young talents, is absolutely terrific as Hannah. She not only gives us the sweet, sarcastic comic performance we all love but she adds an incredible depth to her persona. Her scenes with Ryan Gosling sparkle with a refreshing romantic chemistry. Of course, their one big scene is written creatively and shot very beautifully.

Ryan Gosling, another rising star, is also quite exceptional. He is charming and suave, but there's an undeniable sadness and emptiness. Pairing him with Steve Carell was a wacky idea and it pays off immensely. Their comic chemistry is quite palpable and the reverse mentorship is interesting to watch.

I already discussed the Carell-Moore acting duo but I'll just reiterate that they are fantastic together. Julianne Moore is one of my favorite actresses and her work is remarkable here also. Steve Carell, in his first post-Michael Scott role, proves to be just as relatable and hilarious also.

Marisa Tomei is ferocious in her small role. Not only does she look as beautiful as ever, but her comic performance is brilliantly unhinged. Kevin Bacon is Kevin Bacon, charming even when he shouldn't be.

Jonah Bobo and Analeigh Tipton are the youngsters in the cast and they are a revelation. Bobo is serenely romantic and unusually wise. Tipton nails the awkward confusion of a misplaced crush. Her character is surprisingly well-written. I hope they both get good work after this.

Crazy Stupid Love is a rare romantic-comedy that has a brain and uses it. It embraces its romance and engages in some unexpected humor. When the credits roll, I wanted the movie to keep on going. I enjoyed these characters and wished I lived in their universe. This is the kind of romantic-comedy that should be made more often. It's certainly the kind of script I'd love to write. But only if I can get the talented trio of Moore, Stone and Tomei to star in it.

Crazy Stupid Love: A

Tow Mater: Average Intelligence

After the mammoth success of Toy Story 3, Pixar released Cars 2. I found this to be both baffling and unsurprising. Baffling because its predecessor Cars had the worst reviews in Pixar history (74% while the others are in the upper 90s). Also, the majority of the public place Cars in the bottom when they rank the Pixar movies. Unsurprising because Cars-related merchandise is very, very profitable for Disney. So, yeah, it kind of makes sense that they would want a repeat of those impressive toy sales. After all, would any kid want a stuffed toy rat for his/her birthday?

One of the great things about Pixar is that it appeals to all demographics. Adults and children both enjoy its special brand of humor. Its stories were grand fables with profound philosophies that are perfectly timeless.

Cars 2, however, is directly aimed at children with its simple-minded humor and bland Disney Channel Original Movie moral. I think it's fine for movies to appeal to children but I also think those movies don't have a long shelf life--do you think anyone is going to be watching Marmaduke or Alvin and the Chipmunks in 5 or 10 years? Probably not.

The plot of Cars 2 involves a whole lot of nonsense: international races, espionage, oil companies. It all sounds like a rejected James Bond outline with heavy inspiration from Hitchcock's "wrong man" films (especially North by Northwest--just replace Cary Grant with a truck voiced by Larry the Cable Guy). Even the musical score is Hitchcock-inspired though it's oddly more Psycho than North by Northwest.

The bloated, convoluted plot would have been somewhat forgivable if Lightning McQueen were the protagonist. But for some reason director John Lasseter decided to switch the focus from Lightning to Mater. In my opinion this was a huge HUGE mistake. Lightning is charming and funny; his dramatic arc in the first film was believable and endearing.

But Mater, a barely tolerable supporting character in Cars, doesn't have the depth to carry his own movie. To put it frankly, Mater is just too dumb to be the protagonist. It seems means to say that about a character in a kid's movie but it's true! He either misinterprets or completely ignores what people say and the results are obnoxiously (and tediously) disastrous. Not only that, but he's so sensitive that any criticism yields a mammoth mood drop. This leads to all characters catering to his feelings as if he were a child.

For example, when he makes a fool out of himself and Lightning McQueen in Tokyo, McQueen gets understandably upset. But he's the one who has to feel bad when they fight (you've been a very bad car...a very VERY bad BAD car, Lightning). This all leads to a boring "be yourself" message, which left a bad taste in my mouth. Maybe I'm a conformist, but I don't think people should be able to act however they want in inappropriate settings i.e. a ritzy party in a big city. Mater (and the kids who see themselves in him) should learn the rules of polite society. Mater's behavior at the party (and in the rest of the movie) is pretty obnoxious but he gets a free pass!

The supporting characters, including two British spies (Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer), are okay but they're all sidelined to make room for Mater's hijinks. The characters in Radiator Springs are all but forgotten. And that's too bad--they were such fun in the first movie.

I think the kids will enjoy this movie but I found it frustrating and ludicrous. The violence was unnecessarily brutal and I also don't think the movie made good use of its locations (Japan, France, Italy, England). If they just had to make a sequel, I wish they had made one just a tad closer to the heart of the original.

Cars 2: C

PS - sorry for the heavy Beyonce clips earlier in the blog...except I'm not really sorry at all.