Isle of Dogs

This morning I saw Isle of Dogs, starring the voices of Bryan Cranston and Scarlett Johansson.

Wes Anderson's latest release is inventive, clever, heartwarming, funny, detailed and unique in his signature style. It's also slow-paced, underutilized and at times (sorry) just plain boring.

On the positive side, the voice actors are all brilliant and suited to the persons or canines they represent. Cranston's "Chief" is a dog who bites and doesn't take kindly to being told what to do. Johansson's "Nutmeg" is a sultry beauty, prone to performing tricks at will (and asking observers to imagine her missing props). Bill Murray's "Boss," is well ... very Bill Murray.

Hearing these actors interact with convincing dog dialog is delightful. Anyone who's ever had a pet develops ways of communicating with them, but here we get to imagine what their conversations would be like amongst one another. Where the film fell flat was when it focused on "The Little Pilot," an annoying student activist and the government characters who deport the dogs from Japan.

Perhaps their similarities to our modern-day political world hit too close to home, or maybe I'm just conditioned to see pets portrayed in simpler situations. Whatever the case, the film suffered for me when the focus was on the humans.

In addition, the animation is brilliant, but there are quite a few shots of the dogs walking across the screen in a line. Also several scenes of the trash island they've been deported to (that feels sadly like the Great Pacific Garbage Patch). There's also a hell of a lot of drumming throughout everything. And that gets old real fast.

Go for the gorgeous artistry and strong writing; just know you may need a cup of coffee to get through some of the duller stretches.

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Lust, Caution

Tonight I saw Lust, Caution, starring Tony Leung Chiu Wai and Wei Tang.

It was 2 hours, 28 minutes long, and it felt like 4.

I typically love Lee's mesmerizing films (Brokeback I even counted as my favorite of 2005), but this one nearly put me to sleep.

It's a basic story: girl wants to be an actress, gets caught up in resistance, earns assignment she is both physically and emotionally not ready for - powerful, mean leader sees young eye candy and takes full advantage of it, being at once cruel and gentle. They both betray themselves and alternately fall in love and lust, which of course leads to tragic consequences.

The buzz surrounding this movie because of its graphic, NC17-earning sex has unfortunately clouded the story, which in itself isn't boring, but when drawn out for an unimaginable length of time sure turns out to be.

The acting by the two leads is phenomenal (Leung Chiu Wai is especially captivating) and their chemistry is completely feasible, but I could have done with a lot less of the glances across the room, the poised staring with cigarette in hand and the closeups of jewels and sweat.

Letters From Iwo Jima

Tonight I saw Letters From Iwo Jima, starring Ken Wantanabe and Kazunari Ninomiya.

This story of the Imperial Japanese fighting the Americans in the Battle of Iwo Jima is a sincere attempt to convey the horrors of war on both sides of the fence. However, it should've been an hour shorter.

The acting performances are superb and the battle scenes are an appropriately dizzy, harrowing ride, but the sentiment for me fell short—despite the fact the movie is well over two hours long. After witnessing the atrocities committed by both teams of soldiers, I was just anxious for the film to end because I didn't feel especially compassionate for either side.

Some would say that because the movie is based on a real battle and we know how it truly ended, that some of the suspense will inevitably be lost no matter how good the film is. I might have agreed with this had I not seen United 93, but now that I know it can be done, I no longer see that as a valid excuse.

This movie is nominated for the Best Picture Oscar® because of its beloved director Clint Eastwood, not because of its worth.

Eastwood's companion piece to this film, Flags of Our Fathers, better kept my attention—not just because I'm an American, but because it was a stronger story. What may have brought me into Iwo Jima more is if Clint had shown some familiar faces from his first movie and really tied things together. How compelling would it have been to see one of our beloved soldiers die from the opposite perspective?

More compelling than the result of this film, which left me bored and tired.

Flags of Our Fathers

Tonight I saw Flags of Our Fathers starring Ryan Phillipe and Adam Beach.

The story tells of the soldiers who did (and didn't) raise the flag at The Battle of Iwo Jima—the scene captured in the iconic 1945 photo taken by Joe Rosenthal.

Everything about America is in this movie: blood, pride, racism, mercy, politics, compassion, deception and redemption. I would expect nothing less from Director Clint Eastwood.

I liked all of the performances—Phillipe, Beach, and even the still-creepy-from-Heavenly Creatures Melanie Lynskey who has a small, but memorable role.

The only weaknesses were the pace (slow) and the fight scenes (especially gruesome, when less really could've been more). The characters were well-developed and Iceland made a fine stand-in for the real war-torn soil (the actual present-day Iwo Jima is shown in the credits).

But I'll have to admit, I only teared up at the very end and was able to compose myself rather quickly. It wasn't the sobbing-followed-by-headache pain of Schindler's List or the sobbing-followed-by-vomiting pain of Full Metal Jacket or the sobbing-followed-by-days-of-more-sobbing heartache of Glory.

Maybe I'm just immune to the genre.

Regardless, I'm intrigued by the project Clint is completing now, which actor Barry Pepper told us about during a Q&A following the film. It's a companion piece to Flags of Our Fathers told from the Japanese perspective. It's called Letters from Iwo Jima and is currently in post-production.

Perhaps the theaters will market this cleverly and show the two stories back-to-back.