Molly's Game

A skier (Jessica Chastain) with issues with her psychiatrist father (Kevin Costner), who came up just short of medalling in the Olympics due to a devastating injury, relocates to L.A. and soon finds herself assisting and then running her own high stakes poker games before becoming involved with the Russian mob, catching a RICO charge, and trying to convince a clean cut, high powered attorney (Idris Elba) to represent her in federal court. Aaron Sorkin's approach in his directorial debut never really elevates the screenplay which contains the expected witty Sorkinisms but is overly relentless and bloated, with an unfortuante climactic scene featuring Costner at a skating rink. Chastain's performance is commanding as is Elba in a supporting role, especially during a lenghthy, late arriving speech.

*** out of ****

Steve Jobs

A window into the life of the megalomaniacal Apple visionary as told in three acts in the frantic moments leading up to three launches (the 1984 Mac, the introduction of 1988's NeXT computer, and the iMac in 1998) as he strategizes, confronts, insults, embraces, threatens, or demeans several major players in his life including his faithful assistant and conscience Joanna Hoffman (Kate Winslett), head programmer Andy Hertzfeld (Michael Sthulbarg), close friend and pc pioneer (Steve Wozniak), former Pepsi chair and current Apple CEO and father figure John Sculley (Jeff Daniels), and Chrisann Brennan, a troubled ex-girlfriend (Katherine Waterston) whose daughter Jobs initially denies paternity of. An endless source of fascinating, the latest Steve Jobs movie (and hopefully the last) was hatched by top industry talent. At first, Aaron Sorkin's relentless, droll, sometimes forced dialogue and Danny Boyle's kinetic, stylistic approach do not seem to mesh, but they eventually gain footing and even approach greatness, especially in a second act brilliantly edited and acted wrangle between Fassbender and Daniels. Although to my mind Michael Fassbender seems miscast, he appears to come close to the core of his enigmatic and in many ways despicable character and is given truly fine support by a uniformly excellent cast.

*** 1/2 out of ****

The Newsroom

Season 1

While hosting a Q&A session at Northwestern University Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels), a contented cable news anchor, sees a fleeting vision and, in a momentarily lapse of judgement, lashes out at a student in a trade on American mediocrity. In his return to the air several weeks later, he is reteamed with his old producer and ex-flame (Emily Mortimer) who, alongside station chief (Sam Waterston) and her valiant crew, vows to bring an objective, insightful eye to current events, and restore dignity to our nightly news. "The Newsroom" is Aaron Sorkin's latest series which with the great benefit of 20/20 hindsight, allows him to sound off on the news events of the last year, from the BP oil spill to the killing of Osama bin Laden, to the tea parties, up until the media circus surrounding the Casey Anthony trial. As expected, the show is sharp and well-written, but it is not written well for its specific characters. Aside from Daniels who is adept in the leading role, many actors struggle with the hoops Sorkin has them attempt to jump through. Take Emily Mortimer, a lovely and talented actress in her own right, who often looks foolish and embarrassing attempting material that is clearly out of her comfort zone. Even an old pro like Waterston appears uncomfortable with lines he must have been shaking his head at during rehearsal. The young cast, while featuring several who are strong here (Olivia Munn and Thomas Sadoski especially), just isn't capable of delivering on their absurdly challenging roles (Alison Pill, John Gallagher Jr.) or are not given much to work with (Dev Patel). Also, the relationship storylines are grating, poorly handled, command much screen time, and generate very little interest. The greatest asset to the show and the chief reason to watch (although it is a largely relegated role) is Jane Fonda, who is quite excellent as the domineering station owner and serves as a reminder of the force of nature she really is. "The Newsroom" is smartly written and occasionally engaging, but it is impossible to glaze over the fact that this is agenda based television whose chief goal, as attained by Monday morning quarterbacking, is to steer popular opinion in this all important election year

** 1/2

Moneyball

After his Oakland Athletics tanked after going two games up on the Yankees in the first round of the 2001 playoffs and he loses his three best players, General Manager Billy Beane listens to the usual B.S. at the preseason roundup as his scouts talk about bringing in the most bankable athletes. Knowing the system his flawed and have no money to work with, he meets an Ivy League graduate working for the Cleveland Indians front office who hears the same tune and recruits him to come to Oakland and develop a new system: They will take in guys who have been written off, for off field antics or being injury prone, and sign them to the squad as long as they are cheap and can get on base. Beane's new system seems sure to work, if only he can convince the other dinosaurs in the organization to play ball, and if he can get passed his own failures as a former ballplayer. "Moneyball" is remarkable for how unashamedly baseball oriented it is. We are given a few asides about Beane's home life, but this is really the story of how the game works: the behind the scenes wheeling and dealing, locker room drama, On base percentages and other statistics, power struggles within management, etc. The film was adapted from a true life book by Michael Lewis entitled Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game and director by Bennett Miller, his second outing following the also superb "Capote". It is wonderfully scripted by Oscar winning writers Steve Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, who touch up the script with intelligent and humorous dialogue. Brad Pitt also delivers a finely tuned and nuanced performance as the unconventional Beane and Jonah Hill has a nice dramatic turn as the Ivy Leaguer. Philip Seymour Hoffman, reteaming with Miller, is typically strong as surly A's manager Art Howe. "Moneyball" made me think of how so many sports movies are made to appeal to a general audience and not really about the game they are depicting at all. Here we have the finest film about baseball since "Bull Durham" and the most in depth film about the game that I can recall.

The American President

When a movie has a witty, literate script and is populated by smart characters it is a rarity. When this movie is a romantic comedy it is something like a miracle. The American President, written by recent Oscar winner Aaron Sorkin of Social Network and West Wing fame, is a movie that fits this bill and watching it is like a breath of fresh air. It stars Michael Douglas in a commanding performance as the recently widowed president who takes up with an environmental lobbyist (Annette Bening) something which his staffers frown upon in an election year. Directed by Rob Reiner, this film never ceases to be charming and funny. It's the kind of film with clever, rapid fire dialogue that I wanted to watch again to see what I may have missed. The film lies entirely on one side politically, but it is a well acted and terrifically smart and historically aware movie.

The Social Network

Great films improve with subsequent viewings and The Social Network is that and shows improvement upon my second viewing. The film is a towering achievement for David Fincher, Jesse Eisenberg, and Justin Timberlake, but overall Aaron Sorkin should be commended for his screenplay which, thanks to great dialogue and wonderful plotting, stands as one of the great scripts. With the Oscars about a week away, The King's Speech is the favorite for film of the year (and my favorite), but The Social Network is a generation defining film that plays out a modern day tragedy and is surely a film of the times. 


October 2010 Lamplighter Review and 9/29/10 review   The Social Network follows the founding of the juggernaut online site Facebook and the lawsuits that followed its explosion. Although the movie is thoroughly modern in its setting and material, its story goes back as long as stories go and can be boiled down to the biblical query: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul”

      The film opens at a campus bar with Mark Zuckerberg on a date which seems more like a class lecture, as the girl struggles to keep up with his barrage of facts. After insulting her and being told off, he retreats to his dorm room where he simultaneously blogs about his failed rendezvous while creating a complex online program, which he has up and running within a matter of hours. This will be the most primitive model for Facebook.

      When this project was announced a few years ago, I had more than a few reservations. How could they make an interesting film about a networking site. However, as the cast and crew began to form, it was clear the film would be of substance. It is directed by David Fincher, who has established himself as one of the great visual directors. His involvement elevates the project as he beautifully captures the Harvard campus, and particularly several crew races on the Charles River. The screenplay by Aaron Sorkin (A Few Good Men, The West Wing) is based on the nonfiction book The Accidental Billionares and it is a marvel as it blends complex dialogue with a flashback narrative. I was reminded of Fincher’s own Zodiac where we were assaulted with loads upon loads of case facts (computer jargon and legal speak with this film) which we could not fully comprehend upon an initial viewing, but felt we did anywhere.

      The film is wonderfully cast and for the first time that I can think of, it can be safely said that we have a great acting showcase for young actors. Jesse Eisenberg, a dead ringer for Zuckerberg, plays him as if he actually were a computer program with responses to every situation but maybe lacking basic human emotion and understanding. The results are spectacular. Supporting players also shine. Andrew Garfield plays his friend, Facebook cofounder, and CFO. Justin Timberlake plays Napster founder and snake Sean Parker. Rooney Mara is wonderful in a small role as Zuckerberg’s incorruptible date in the opening scene. It is a wonder watching these actors convincingly play smart and well established characters.

      The Social Network is a wonder of a film in so many ways, yet by the time it ended I was left wanting more. It ends on a clever note, but I was hoping the film would have gone deeper and further explored the tragedy of Zuckerberg’s character. Although it could have been more ambitious in scope, this is one of the year’s best films.