for-the-weekend quickies

If you need a movie to see (or not see):

[atthetheater] BLUEVALENTINE (Michelle Williams, Ryan Gosling — Derek Cianfrance, 2010)
You've probably heard that this flick is a depressing time. And, sure, the end is devastating, but from the title, that you should have gleaned. The acting, of course, is superb. The bob-haired five-year-old who plays the daughter is a heartbreaker. At one point, she runs to say bye to her dad (Gosling) who's smoking a cigarette. Despite the fact that he's covered in paint and looking particularly disgusting — not to mention puffing a Marlboro — she leaps into his arms and is delighted to be there. Because he's her dad.
verdict: Though the falling-out-of-love that drives the later years of Gosling and Williams' marriage is devastating, I left the movie still longing for someone as fiercely loving as Gosling's character. ♥♥♥♥

[intheredbox] THEROMANTICS (Katie Holmes, Josh Duhamel — Galt Neiderhoffer, 2010)
As a huge fan of 85% of the cast, I've been waiting for The Romantics since I saw their spread in J. Crew. The film, however, was a disappointment. Having read one of Neiderhoffer's other novels (The Taxonomy of Barnacles), I was expecting something a bit off and twisted. But the mess that is The Romantics was a frustrating one. Holmes (though the same age, maybe younger than the rest of the cast) feels inappropriately cast as the past love interest of the always aesthetic Duhamel. Unfortunately for everyone, Duhamel is marrying Anna Paquin, who is crazy. The story takes place over a 24-hour period, during which the characters move from sober to drunk, back to sober, to really drunk, to angry, to drunk, to sober. Except Paquin. She remains crazy and alone the whole time.

verdict: Frustrating from fight to kiss to end, The Romantics fell far below my expectations. ♥♥

[fromthevault] theGODFATHER (Marlon Brando, Al Pacino — Francis Ford Coppola, 1972)

I can't believe I lived nineteen-and-a-half years of my life without seeing this masterpiece. Maybe the most highly regarded movie of all time, this three-hour Italian mob fest is more than just catchy phrases and blood. It's about family and destiny and spaghetti. Really, if you're going to watch this movie, you better be prepared to pause in the middle after the description of how to make family sized spaghetti and toss in some skinny noodles. Cannoli's can't hurt either. ♥♥♥♥♥