25/50 (50/100) Rolls On

50/50 (2011) (10 of 50 movies)

I thought this was a really well done cancer "comedy" (dramedy?) It was actually based on the real life story of a friend of Seth Rogen's (who here plays the best friend) battle (and eventual triumph over cancer-knowing that sort of took some of the suspense out of the ending but whatever) and Rogen does his thing as a vulgar, funny buddy to Joseph Gordon-Levitt who is suffering from cancer. I am not sure why, actually, this hasn't received more attention but it could find another life on DVD and what not. I am sucker for a good story with best friends, and one shot of Seth Rogen when he was waiting to see the results of Levitt's surgery. I will admit it made me tear up. I have to stop admitting that.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) (11/50 movies)

Pretty much the 180 degree opposite of Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, a spy movie that is dry as melba toast, and, pretty slow moving. Which sounds like I didn't like it, but I did. First off, it's an acting masterclass, Gary Oldman does away with his usual histrionics and plays George Smiley so quiet, trying to sniff out a double agent in the British secret service. They manage to wring, to me,  suspense out of simple conversations as he tries to suss out people's motivations and loyalties. It's good, but it is slow, it is not just a homage to seventies movies, but it seems like it has been transported via time machine from the seventies.

The whole reminded me of Eddie Izzard's bit about British Vs. American movies


To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything, Julie Newmar (1995) (12 of 50 movies)

I am quite sure that someone smarter than me could watch this movie and tell me that there are a bunch of different ways that this Hollywood movie got cross-dressing and/or homosexuality wrong, or it is offensive in some way to either or both of these groups. I will give them that, most certainly. So, we started watching this out of the blue one night, Tina had seen it in the theater when she was younger, and to be perfectly honest, it totally broke through my black, cynical heart. It was intending to be heartwarming while maybe, just maybe (I know) shining a positive light on a minority group. And it's just nice, very very nice. So if mainstream movies like this, The Birdcage, and In and Out helped push the needle a bit as far as the acceptance of different people and different lifestyles, I'll say there isn't anything wrong with. Its wholly inoffensive in a good way, and it has a nice message of being oneself. You can't really go wrong with that sort of thing, I think.