Friends with Benefits

If you find yourself walking to the theater and not wanting to see a superhero movie, you may turn to the romantic comedy Friends With Benefits and think to yourself I've already seen this movie. While the premise is exactly the same as No Strings Attached, FWB seems to benefit from having taken the extra time to develop their writing and the chemistry between the two leads. It is still the same movie but this version of friends who just want the physical without all the emotional baggage is better.

A lot of the success of the movie is based on the chemistry between the two leads. They are both super sexy people with a lot of charisma and are each easy to like and neither are strangers to comedies. Mila Kunis got her start on the sitcom “That 70’s Show,” while her co-star Justin Timberlake was recently nominated for his work on “Saturday Night Live.” While both have been dabbling in a couple of Academy Award nominated movies, it is nice to see them get back to what they have done so well in the past.

A big part of the success also comes from the writing team of Keith Merryman, David Newman, and director Will Gluck who creates a sharply written movie filled with witty back and forth banter. The guys were on a role and put in a lot of material for their actors to work with. The jokes came at the audience so fast it was easy to miss a couple comebacks while you were laughing at the third joke in. The first half of the movie is full of one-liners and gentle ribbing.

There is also plenty of ribbing of the very genre they are trying to succeed in. The movie goes to task on the rom-com and all the pitfalls of the genre. But almost in the same breath while shouting out all the wrongs of their genre Gluck than goes ahead and commits all his previously mentioned sins as if he didn’t know how else to execute the movie. Just because you acknowledge all of the clichés doesn’t give you full reign to commit them yourself, in fact it probably makes it worse. At the very least he seems to acknowledge the wrongs himself, the biggest ones all being committed towards the end of the movie.

One such sin often poked fun at is the music selection of romantic comedies to help the audience know exactly how they should feel at the moment. And while the song selection performs just as our characters explained they are supposed to I loved almost every song they picked and was left to humming most of the tunes as I left the theater. Except “Hey Soul Sister” that song is a worse affront to human ears than an ice pick.

The first half of the movie is fun and witty and sexy, but due to the fact that this is a romantic comedy everyone in the audience knows that this can’t last. Faster than you can say Kriss Kross the movie makes the abrasive jump to sappy romance. All of a sudden we go from great dialogue to sappy stories of family tragedy, which helps to explain blah, blah, blah.

It actually isn’t all bad; Richard Jenkins is really impressive as JT’s dad. If you allow yourself to truly get involved with the story his is heartbreaking and Jenkins does well in the role. Rounding out his family is his sister Jenna Elfman and her son Nolan Gould (the kid from ‘Modern Family’). The kid is good, but I would have loved to see a little more of Elfman doing anything besides just moving the story along. Mila’s mommy is played by Patricia Clarkson who Will Gluck once again casts for the role of mother. She is solid in the role and has some great moments but as a supporting character isn’t nearly as funny as Woody Harrelson as Justin’s gay sports editor. He is fantastic in everything he touches and has an ability to turn every scene on its head with perfect comic timing. The stand outs here are Jenkins and Harrelson but they all do a great job.

It’s tough to believe anyone as beautiful as Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis would have such dating problems, but if you put that thought on the side the movie is actually pretty fun. There is plenty of witty banter and self deprecating jokes to make you forget some of the hokier moments in the climax of the movie. And if that is not enough the two stars are naked for a decent section of the movie, so you should have something nice to stare at for a bit. B-

Black Swan

The beginning of the movie, is the movie. It tells the whole story of what is to come the rest of the way. Unlike the movie it takes place while our main character is asleep so we know that this isn't happening, the rest of the way the audience can never be sure what in the movie is real and what is not. From there we dip in and out of the mind of Darren Aronofsky as he places Natalie Portman in prime position to win an Oscar.

SYNOPSIS

Portman plays Nina Sayers, a girl with the singular obsession of becoming the prima ballerina at her New York Company. She works the hardest and her technique is perfect making her the best choice for the White Swan but the artistic director has decided to combine the White and Black Swan into one role and she lacks the passion to play the antagonist. Enter Mila Kunis, the sexy, free spirited transfer from San Fransisco. Her character Lily is everything that Nina wishes she could be and embodies the spirit of the Black Swan. In any other production the casting would be clear, in this production Nina must take Lily in as a rival, friend, and mentor.

FIN

The movie entices you in the opening sequence, the music will keep you entranced. Clint Mansell was brought on to score the film, and has worked with Aronofsky before. For Black Swan he created the entire score using only elements from the original 1876 ballet. The music elevates every sensation during the movie and hits at all the right times. While many will want to forget some of the things they have just witnessed it will be impossible to leave the theater without Tchaikovsky's original composition stuck in your head.

Portman's performance as the singularly minded professional is haunting. The character's transformation to reach perfection seems almost effortless. The most challenging part of the performance was no doubt the ten months of dance lessons along with the 20 pounds she needed to drop to look like a dancer. It pays off as Portman looks solid doing most of her own dancing. Her own transformation helps makes the character's transformation more believable. If she had not gone through ten hour days of training, seven days a week her performance may have suffered. Instead we get nothing but intensity. The rise of evil is a story not usually shared as it tends to do so poorly box-office. Plus there are many of us who have been Disney-fied to believe that all stories have a happy ending, when in actuality the story of Swan Lake itself is a tragedy. Nina seems to suffer from an idealistic state of naivety exemplified by her pink room filled with dolls. She is forced to go through both a psychological and physical transformation to achieve her ultimate goal.

The people Nina surrounds herself with do little to help with finding the correct balance to achieve her goal. Vincent Cassel plays the director pushing her to embrace her sensual side to become The Black Swan. Her desire for his approval allows him to take full advantage of his pupil, Nina speaks highly of her director yet we see her being treated in a poor manner. It's tough to tell if this is a power play and deception or a brilliant artist looking to get the most out of his players. The ambiguity leaves the audience to wonder whose side is he on, is he playing the part of Prince Siegfried or von Rothbart. In all actuality it is probably intended to be a combination of both, much like his leading lady.

Nina still lives with her mother, played perfectly by Barbara Hershey, and is a former ballerina herself, who no doubt pushed her daughter into this career path. Her mother simultaneously tries to coddle Nina and subvert her as she is envious of her daughter becoming more successful than she could ever be. The other older figure we see is the former prima ballerina, forced into retirement. Winona Ryder shows our lead what happens after the limelight is taken away, and what could be awaiting her. Her presence in the film adds to her fear of being overtook by another actress in the company.

Then there is the seductress Mila Kunis, who mirrors Portman in almost every facet. The difference being the free-spirited nature she posses which threaten Nina as the prima ballerina. Lily is the most difficult character to decipher in the film as Nina may be influencing the audience by projecting onto her rival slash fried. Lily leaves the audience enchanted and unsure what to believe as she shares the same ambition as Nina and seems willing to do what is necessary. She, along with some of the other ballerinas, highlight the competitive nature of the theater and adds to the pressure of the protagonist to excel or risk being bypassed. It is a delicate balance of ruthlessness and friendship that Kunis shows well on the screen. Rarely are there many movies that deliver so many strong female characters, it is a credit to writers Mark Haymen and Andres Heinz. Oh and the girl on girl stuff is hot.

Taking away from the character development and evolution in the film is some of the dialouge. There is little to no subtlty in this film. Darren Aronofsky has a certain way he wants his viewers to feel and then beats you over the head with it. The writing also possess this trait by having the characters around Nina scream things at her that the audience should be inferring for themselves. This is in direct conflict with the rest of the film as Aronofsky rarely gives up his hand in showing what is real.

Similar to The Wrestler, Aronofsky chooses to use a hand held camera for most of the movie, using a lot of medium and close-up shots. The shakey camera work adds to the rocky experience that embodies the transformation. It forces the viewer quickly to encompass the style of movie and emerge yourself completely into the film or risk being left by the wayside. And no one wants to walk out of a movie disheartened, especially after spending all that money on popcorn. The movie at points is very ridiculous, in its premise and writing. To fully enjoy it, much like the performers in the play the directors ask you to submerge fully into the art, allowing it to take complete control.

The movie is all about artistic obsession and if the art is supposed to reflect the artist than you have to wonder what is going on in Aronofsky's head. Especially considering so many of his films deal with a protagonist reaching for greatness in their career at the cost of everything else around them (read: The Wrestler, Pi). I just want someone to make sure he is okay, and let him know that people like his stuff. A