Boys, they'll make you happy

Maybe I just pick good movies to see, or perhaps I stick to movies I think there's a good chance I'll like. Regardless, I'm happy to say that these two reviews are both positive.

Dreamgirls

I would venture to say that every year there is one film that we're just dying to see in our household. But I don't know when we anticipated it so highly we built our holiday travel plans around it! On Christmas Day we were poised and ready to see the (sold out) Dreamgirls. Thankfully I have seen the sad man who rides the bus in those commercials and picked our tickets up in advance.

How best to sum up this movie? Jennifer Hudson rules the universe, and the audience at our screening applauded no less than four times. But let me elaborate...

The movie is already ahead in that it's chock full of some classic, catchy, memorable songs. I defy you to get the tunes out of your head the next day. In particular there are winning moments with "Steppin' To the Bad Side" and "Move."

And then of course we have J-Hud. It is as if, like Athena, she sprung fully grown from the head of Jennifer Holliday, poised to take the character of Effie into the next milennium. She growls, she rolls her eyes, she bitches, she moans. And most importantly - she belts. Sure, her crowning moment (and the reason she'll receive an Oscar nomination) is "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going." But watch for her more subtle and sparkling performances with "One Night Only" and "I Am Changing." She doesn't steal the movie, but you'll be hard pressed to not have her be the first thing you talk about when you exit the theater.

The rest of the cast is mostly great. Beyonce is quite surprising in her turn as Deena. She plays it as very meek and unassured in the beginning, only asserting herself with the very well-sung "Listen" in the final act. I would say she is no Sheryl Lee Ralph [whom I meant recently is an absolutely divine human being], but she doesn't disappoint either. To really appreciate her performance I call your attention to her own attention to the details. Look at her when they first take the stage as Jimmy Earley's back-up singers. Her face is all nervousness as she tries to quickly find a choreographed groove. It's one moment that actually stands out to me. Let's just say my respect for Ms. Knowles has gone up several notches.

Yet the most underrated performance from the reviews I have read is Anika Noni Rose. Perhaps that's appropriate, as she portrays the underrated, "forgotten" member of the trio, Lorrell. Noni (I can call her that, because I know we're totally going to be BFFs), provides the biggest laugh-out-loud moments in the film, and really grows as a character throughout. The shy giggling teenager at the start becomes a cool self-assured woman when she finally ends her troubled romance with Jimmy. Thankfully she gets a chance to shine as a singer in the made-for-the-movie song "Patience." [Trivia moment - the lounge singer late in the film is Loretta Divine, who played the original Lorrell on Broadway.]

Speaking of Jimmy, it is with great surprise that I tell you Eddie Murphy is kinda awesome. He creates a believeable character that's all his own, wooing ladies you believe he could actually get. And he sings! Well! When he starts in on "Cadillac Car" I just love it.

The weak spot here is Jamie Foxx. He's not bad, per se, but it's just not his best work. I kept finiding myself thinking how much better he was in Ray.

As for the rest of the film, it's all glitz and glamour. The costumes, divine when appropriate, at other times hilarious in that "I can't believe people wore that in the 70s" way. The music is well-integrated to the plot, better than in Chicago. The editing is fast-paced and will leave you breathless. When the three girls sashay onto the stage all in red flapping sequins for "Steppin'" you'll say, "Now THAT is what I paid for!"


Children of Men

What could be more completely different than the above film? How about Alfonso Cuaron's horrific vision of society in ruins in the year 2027? Nothing is more cheery than a future where all of mankind is sterile.

Borrowed from P.D. James' excellent novel of the same name (read it, really liked it), the movie isn't uplifting, but it's not really a tearjerker either. It's thoughtful, interesting, and visually depressing. What I liked most about the movie is that it just keeps going - you don't have moments of people sitting around blathering on and on. Sadly it was overlooked at the Golden Globes and likely won't get any Oscar notice.

The highlight (shocking, I know) is Clive Owen. He's very, very good - but not at all trying to be the sexy stud we know and love. He's just a man trying to help any way he can. How hot is that?

This is not a movie about a destination. It's about the journey. And appropriately - it ends when the journey has neared its conclusion. It's satisfying in this simplicity, and yet you'll find the visions of what mankind can do to itself will linger well after the lights come up.