After the first theater kept bouncing it for "Elegy," the second theater bumped it for something listed as "Special Event, A"--which I somehow suspect was connected to the RNC being in town. So we made the trek to a movie theater about 10 miles out of our way. I had google-mapped the location in advance, and had plotted out a list of errands to do, and was all excited that my oil was changed, my hair was cut, I picked up a snack at McDonald's, and I was still able to buy and read the first chapter-or-so of a book on HTML programming before having to be at the theater. I ended up in the parking lot about 30 minutes before the movie, and was happy to see that the movie's name was displayed on the marquee.
But as I sat in my car studying my HTML (it's to help with the unemployment factor... it's NOT my usual choice for light reading), I started to notice that no one else was pulling into the lot. At about 10 minutes before the movie I decided to go ahead and walk into the lobby and buy my ticket. Yep. The place was empty. There were 4 cars (3 plus mine) in the lot. I was sure that when my movie-date showed up, we'd end up being told that they weren't open. But we headed into the movie and got to choose our seats... out of the entire theater. Yep. Private showing in the theater. How cool is that? As if the Cinema gods were rewarding us for our efforts.
Usually, I hate it when people talk in movies--and this includes anyone who is with me. But I have to say that it kind of helped in this movie. Which is not to say that I regret chasing "Henry Poole" for three weeks. It's a very nice little movie. I loved both Luke Wilson (who plays Henry) and Adriana Barraza (his neighbor Esperanza Martinez). They were really amazing to watch as they debated faith and religion without really debating it. Her passion and quiet intensity was amazing. And he was just so likeable, without trying to be. But some times there were blank spaces that we had to fill.
Unfortunately, here is the thing about a movie which focuses on the possibility of miracles: No matter how it ends it's going to feel like it cheated. I really really liked about 85% of the movie. But I probably should have left about 10 minutes before the end. I think it's a movie where ending with a big question mark would have been great.
On the other hand, I should mention that I loved "Definitely, Maybe" which I watched on Netflix over the weekend. It focuses on Will Hayes (played by Ryan Reynolds--who has hunky potential, but in this simply plays a great guy who simply happens to be good looking) and his daughter Maya (played by Abigail Breslin).
**sidenote** Have you ever noticed that both Luke Wilson and Ryan Reynolds have really good hair? Luke's frequently looks like it needs to be combed in the movie, but they both just have great hair. **end sidenote**
The essence of the first 3/4 of "Definitely, Maybe" is Will telling his daughter about three women he dated, all so that she can try to guess which one is her mom. The movie jumps back and forth in flashbacks, and you find yourself falling for these three diverse women--not to mention falling for Will.
In the end, yes, you do find out who Maya's mom is. And, you know, it's okay. Even more so, although Will's character ends the movie with a little bit of a question mark, you end the movie with a feeling of "Okay... They'll be okay... These are people I like and I think they'll be okay..."
I wish I felt that way at the end of "Henry Poole." I really liked the main characters (and some of the great secondary players) at various times during the film, but I was too bothered by how the end of the movie worked itself out to contemplate whether they were going to be okay or not. On the other hand, I really do wish I had Luke Wilson's hair.
No comments:
Post a Comment