Best Picture Showcase

Well we made it through all 5 movies yesterday at the AMC Best Picture Showcase. Below are my reviews of all 5 movies starting with my least favorite and ending at my favorite. To read the recap on the days adventure click over to my blog here. Thanks to Diana for being brave enough to take on this challenge with me.

• Milk- This was the first movie of the day and even after seeing 4 other movies it felt the longest. The film seemed very choppy almost like they were trying to hard to make it feel like a documentary. That might of been what they were going for as the movie is based on the life of Harvey Milk but it just didn't seem to come together well. None of the acting jumped off the screen with the exception of James Franco's small restrained role. I should state that I am not a huge Sean Penn fan but the whole time I keep thinking that he was playing a variation of the role he played in I Am Sam. Once coming to that conclusion it was hard to see anything else in his portrayal of Milk. It was an interesting story on the life of Harvey Milk but I wish the filmmakers had spent more time on the aftermath of his death in the film as the ending seemed very rushed, especially after the long build up.


• The Reader- The second film of the day was very well acted, thanks mostly to Kate Winslet who holds nothing back in her portrayal of Hanna. The Reader follows the story of Michael Berg who is drawn into an affair with Hanna, a stranger twice his age, after she helps him when he becomes ill. Hanna enjoys Michael reading to her and later we learn that Hanna is illiterate. Years later when Michael is a law student observing the Nazi war crime trials he is shocked to see Hanna on the stand accused of war crimes. The movie was very well acted but the subject matter makes it a little hard to take in and leaves the viewer feeling depressed by the end even though you are given closure on all of the characters and their storylines. A very interesting movie that is worth the viewing if you are in for a heavy movie.


• Frost/Nixon- The last movie of the evening and the second based on historical events, after Milk, Frost/Nixon tells the story of British TV personality David Frost's interview with former President Nixon after he resigns from office. Frank Langella in my opinion gives the best performance of the lead actors in any of the movies shown today. His portrayal of Nixon is amazing and he would get my vote for Best Actor. The story is quite captivating and quite humorous at times. Even though most people know the outcome of the interviews you are still on the edge of your seat as the movie reaches the end of the interviews. Director Ron Howard does a good job of recapturing the sense of these 1977 interviews and the viewers feels like they are fly on the wall during the whole process.


• The Curious Case of Benjamin Button- Movie number 3 of the day is based on the story by F. Scott Fitzgerald about a man who is born in his 80's and ages backward. This movie has the same feel as movies like Forest Gump where the viewer can appreciate all the attention to detail on even the smallest thing, like a button. The movie has heart and I really enjoyed the uniqueness of the story while at the same time being taken back by the way the filmmakers present the world from 1918 to 2005. It truly is a trip worth taking.


• Slumdog Millionaire- The 4th movie of the day and my favorite. From the acting by all involved to the music and the colorful shots of India, this movie was the most enjoyable of the day. It tells the rag to riches story of Jamal Malik who appears on the game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire. While on the show Jamal flashes back through his life revealing the sadness, heartbreak, and joy that leads him to know the answers of the game show. This movie is a celebration of life and your feel uplifted by the final scene of the movie. The movie gives the viewer the whole human emotion from its first scene to it's last every emotion is covered and you feel connected to Jamal and the others in the story. My vote for Best Picture goes to Slumdog Millionaire.

And that is all 5 reviews. I can't believe we made it through all five movies in one day. It was defiantly a fun adventure and I think I would do it again.