Tonight I saw Battle of the Sexes, starring Emma Stone and Steve Carrell.
I've never cared for watching tennis, but this film drew me into the excitement of it—at least for a real-life match that took place two years before I was born.
The 1973 exhibition match, dubbed "The Battle of the Sexes," was between famed female star Billie Jean King (Stone) and aging has-been Bobby Riggs (Carrell). King was 29 and Riggs was 55. Everyone was sure he'd win.
The story begins as King fights for wage equality for female tennis players. Losing that battle, she founds the Women's Tennis Association and takes with her the greatest players of the era. In the midst of their new fame, King is challenged to a match by Riggs and reluctantly agrees.
The film chronicles the lead up to and playing of the game, also focusing on the personal lives of Riggs and King—who both had troubled marriages. His for his gambling addiction; hers for the lesbian lover she's taken, though she genuinely loves her husband too.
Carrell is campy and obnoxious like the real Riggs, and Stone stays true to the mannerisms of the real-life King, bringing an endearing focus to the domestic side of her.
Supporting players like Sarah Silverman and Elisabeth Shue are a welcome addition to the mix, which is thoroughly entertaining throughout.
A solid film, with the women's fight for equal rights unfortunately still timely though the match happened over 40 years ago.
~~~
Showing posts with label Steve Carell. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Steve Carell. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 03, 2018
Monday, December 28, 2015
The Big Short
Tonight I saw The Big Short, starring Christian Bale and Steve Carell.
The housing bubble was building for years, but no one saw it coming. No one, that is, except for a few industry outliers who found a way to bet on it.
Michael Burry (Bale) was a hedge fund manager who simply did the math. He was someone who looked for cracks in the system and understood numbers on a primal level. He called it years before it happened and he was right.
Mark Baum (Carell) is a money manager furious with the world. He's just lost his brother to suicide and as he works through that tragedy in therapy, he discovers that his job in the financial industry has a lot to do with who he has become. Baum listens to the right person and also believes the bubble will burst. He invests wisely as a result.
Financial stories are not typically compelling, but told here in talking-to-the-camera fashion (which shouldn't work, but for some reason does) it becomes riveting. It's flashy and fast and full of f-bombs, but I promise if you see it, you won't get bored.
Bale is so faithful to the actual man he's portraying, he actually borrowed his clothes for the film. And Carell, a comic genius with the skill to bring heavy drama at a moment's notice, also does not disappoint.
The Oscars may come calling for these actors—perhaps even the movie itself. I wouldn't be surprised or sad if they did.
~~~
The housing bubble was building for years, but no one saw it coming. No one, that is, except for a few industry outliers who found a way to bet on it.
Michael Burry (Bale) was a hedge fund manager who simply did the math. He was someone who looked for cracks in the system and understood numbers on a primal level. He called it years before it happened and he was right.
Mark Baum (Carell) is a money manager furious with the world. He's just lost his brother to suicide and as he works through that tragedy in therapy, he discovers that his job in the financial industry has a lot to do with who he has become. Baum listens to the right person and also believes the bubble will burst. He invests wisely as a result.
Financial stories are not typically compelling, but told here in talking-to-the-camera fashion (which shouldn't work, but for some reason does) it becomes riveting. It's flashy and fast and full of f-bombs, but I promise if you see it, you won't get bored.
Bale is so faithful to the actual man he's portraying, he actually borrowed his clothes for the film. And Carell, a comic genius with the skill to bring heavy drama at a moment's notice, also does not disappoint.
The Oscars may come calling for these actors—perhaps even the movie itself. I wouldn't be surprised or sad if they did.
~~~
Sunday, July 28, 2013
The Way Way Back
This morning I saw The Way Way Back, starring Liam James and Toni Collette.
Duncan (James) is a socially awkward teenager on summer break with his mother Pam (Collette) and her jerk-of-a-boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell). They land in a sleepy beach town where Trent has a community of colorful friends.
Not wanting to have any part of 'family time,' Duncan escapes to the nearby water park where Owen (Sam Rockwell) gives him a job, and more importantly, a sense of place. Owen is a misfit in his own right, annoying his colleague/girlfriend Caitlin with his immature behavior. Owen and Duncan make each other better.
Rockwell is especially good, portraying a fun-on-the-outside, yet broken-on-the-inside man. As an actor, Rockwell is criminally underutilized, but here at least, he gets to support the leads with some depth.
James is also great as the nerdy boy, loved by his mother who is too preoccupied with her own relationship to show it. Collette and Carell, who played a very different couple in Little Miss Sunshine, have a familiar chemistry that allows them to convince us of both their infatuation and discomfort.
There's not much more to this film than the standard coming-of-age argument scenes, awkward family moments and kinda-sorta first loves, but that's okay, because it's so easy to watch.
~~~
Duncan (James) is a socially awkward teenager on summer break with his mother Pam (Collette) and her jerk-of-a-boyfriend Trent (Steve Carell). They land in a sleepy beach town where Trent has a community of colorful friends.
Not wanting to have any part of 'family time,' Duncan escapes to the nearby water park where Owen (Sam Rockwell) gives him a job, and more importantly, a sense of place. Owen is a misfit in his own right, annoying his colleague/girlfriend Caitlin with his immature behavior. Owen and Duncan make each other better.
Rockwell is especially good, portraying a fun-on-the-outside, yet broken-on-the-inside man. As an actor, Rockwell is criminally underutilized, but here at least, he gets to support the leads with some depth.
James is also great as the nerdy boy, loved by his mother who is too preoccupied with her own relationship to show it. Collette and Carell, who played a very different couple in Little Miss Sunshine, have a familiar chemistry that allows them to convince us of both their infatuation and discomfort.
There's not much more to this film than the standard coming-of-age argument scenes, awkward family moments and kinda-sorta first loves, but that's okay, because it's so easy to watch.
~~~
Monday, August 08, 2011
Crazy, Stupid, Love
Tonight I saw Crazy, Stupid, Love starring Steve Carell and Ryan Gosling.
Yes, it really is that good.
I'll admit I was skeptical of what some critics are practically calling the second coming of romantic comedies, but it really got me.
Cal (Carell) is a devastated dad who is blindsided by his wife's admission of an affair and her desire for a divorce. He drowns his sorrows in cranberry vodkas at a local club, which is obviously geared toward younger singles.
His moping catches the eye of womanizer Jacob (Gosling) who decides to adopt Cal as a pet project and give him a man-makeover. Soon they are picking up women in the same way, and loving-and-leaving them.
Emily (Julianne Moore), Cal's wife, is remorseful about her cheating, but still seeing the "other man" at work. Jessica, the babysitter, (Analeigh Tipton) has a crush on Cal. Cal's son Robbie (Jonah Bobo) has a crush on Jessica. Confused yet?
Really, it's much simpler than it sounds, and undeniably sweet.
Sure, Emily's done something bad and Cal's behavior in the aftermath isn't much better, but the difference between this and a million other rom-coms is that these characters are very likable. We actually kind of want them to reconcile, despite their mistakes, to keep their son's vision of true love alive.
Also a joy to watch is the slimy-yet-redeeming Ryan Gosling and the always-electric Emma Stone. Their chemistry is fantastic, though they're barely on screen more than 15 minutes together.
There's laughter throughout, a borderline-slapstick scene at the end (following a twist that most won't see coming) and a satisfying ending that's both believable and welcome.
Yeah, you should go see it. I might just see it again.
~~~
Yes, it really is that good.
I'll admit I was skeptical of what some critics are practically calling the second coming of romantic comedies, but it really got me.
Cal (Carell) is a devastated dad who is blindsided by his wife's admission of an affair and her desire for a divorce. He drowns his sorrows in cranberry vodkas at a local club, which is obviously geared toward younger singles.
His moping catches the eye of womanizer Jacob (Gosling) who decides to adopt Cal as a pet project and give him a man-makeover. Soon they are picking up women in the same way, and loving-and-leaving them.
Emily (Julianne Moore), Cal's wife, is remorseful about her cheating, but still seeing the "other man" at work. Jessica, the babysitter, (Analeigh Tipton) has a crush on Cal. Cal's son Robbie (Jonah Bobo) has a crush on Jessica. Confused yet?
Really, it's much simpler than it sounds, and undeniably sweet.
Sure, Emily's done something bad and Cal's behavior in the aftermath isn't much better, but the difference between this and a million other rom-coms is that these characters are very likable. We actually kind of want them to reconcile, despite their mistakes, to keep their son's vision of true love alive.
Also a joy to watch is the slimy-yet-redeeming Ryan Gosling and the always-electric Emma Stone. Their chemistry is fantastic, though they're barely on screen more than 15 minutes together.
There's laughter throughout, a borderline-slapstick scene at the end (following a twist that most won't see coming) and a satisfying ending that's both believable and welcome.
Yeah, you should go see it. I might just see it again.
~~~
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