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The Bridge starring Diane Kruger: Goes Between Very Engaging & Seriously Boring

Posted on August 22, 2013 Written by ripitup

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the bridge
Image via awesomedl.com.

The Bridge is an adaptation of the Danish-Swedish show called (Bron/Broen).

I came across it while I was checking out summer thriller series, and I go between really liking the show and being turned off by it.

The Bridge is like a weird combination of gory thriller, compelling human drama and well, annoying soap. I hate the soap part. Let me walk you over the plot if you haven’t checked it out already:

El Paso detective Sonya Cross (Diane Kruger) and Mexican cop Marco Ruiz (Damien Bichir) find themselves at the same crime scene when a murder has cut a body in half, and well placed it so that half will be on the Mexican and half on American soil. Sonya is a *strange workaholic who follows the rules, and because the victim is an American judge, claims the crime scene is theirs. Marco has no objections.

But it later turns out that one half of the body doesn’t belong to the judge, but a Mexican woman-which also gets the Mexico PD involved.

There is a serial killer out there who is killing Mexican women so that people will pay attention, but he isn’t above trying to kill or threaten others who get in his way.

It doesn’t help matters that the killer loves sending his messages through the substance-loving journalist Daniel Frye (Matthew Lillard), Sonya has a condition which disables her to be sensitive, diplomatic or empathetic, there’s a secret tunnel a widower’s (Annabeth Gish) late husband used for illegal purposes and Marco’s marriage is about to get on shaky ground. And then there is Steven Linder (Thomas M. Wright) who would quite fit the profile of a serial killer, except he seems to be more interested in saving women in some way than killing them….

*

I really like the (possibly) Asperger’s syndrome-suffering Sonya and how her condition makes for stressful, difficult or sometimes downright funny situations.

For instance: how Marco’s wife found out a certain thing.

I like how Marco presents a full contrast to Sonya’s rule-abiding and literal behavior and logic.

The serial killer aspect is engaging, chilling and it is fun watching Marco’s interactions with Hank (Sonya’s boss, played by Ted Levine), Sonya and others at the station.

But even though the events might be connected, I absolutely can’t stand the widow, the female Mexican gangster as well as the male one and their interactions with anyone. It feels too much like a soap.

I also don’t understand why we have to see the personal life of every character, minor or major. I am not interested  in Marco’s wife’s life outside of Marco or the kids, the widow’s sex/business partnership with Ray (Bryan Van Holt) or internal/external struggles of Daniel.

So the show ranges from promising to annoying, boring to engaging and back. So far I have seen all episodes, but I did use the fast-forward button at times. I recommend giving it a shot, but be prepared for all the goriness and raunchiness FX allows.

I’m not against gory or raunchy if used well, but I just didn’t see the point of Ray going down on the Mexican mob woman, e.g. I don’t think a lot of viewers enjoyed the scene. Oh well… I’ll give it the next episode for the sake of all the scenes that were worth watching.

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Yeah, I know, I have mixed feelings about the show. I also think each episode can be 5-10 minutes shorter.  I’d watch the original, but I’ve been to movie message boards and know who the killer is there. Ouch.

How do you like The Bridge? And have you seen the original?

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Fun cast note: Matthew Lillard and Diane Kruger worked together before in Wicker Park.

 

Also on Diane Kruger

Unknown starring Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones & Aidan Quinn

Wicker Park starring Josh Hartnett, Diane Kruger, Rose Byrne & Matthew Lillard

Copying Beethoven starring Ed Harris, Diane Kruger and Matthew Goode 

The Hunting Party starring Richard Gere, Terrence Howard and Jesse Eisenberg

 

 

 

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Filed Under: TV shows Tagged With: amien bichir, Annabeth Gish, Brian Van Holt, damien bichir, Diane Kruger, diane kruger the bridge, matthew lillard, ted levine, the bridge, the bridge cast, the bridge series review, the bridge us series, thomas m. wright

Beautiful Girls starring Timothy Hutton, Matt Dillon, Uma Thurman, Natalie Portman and Mira Sorvino

Posted on September 19, 2010 Written by ripitup

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Beautiful Girls starring Timothy Hutton, Matt Dillon, Mira Sorvino, Uma Thurman, Natalie Portman, Michael Rapaport, Noah Emmerich, Lauren Holly and Rosie O'Donnell
Beautiful Girls starring Timothy Hutton, Matt Dillon, Mira Sorvino, Uma Thurman, Natalie Portman, Michael Rapaport, Noah Emmerich, Lauren Holly and Rosie O’Donnell.

Willie Conway (Timothy Hutton) is a piano player, living in the city. He is not exactly sure about his future career path and he is equally clueless about what he wants from his girlfriend Tracy (Annabeth Gish).He heads home to a small town called Knight’s Ridge, to stay for a couple of days and reunite for his old school friends. As it turns out, Willie is not the only one unsure about his relationship:

Tommy (Matt Dillon) is dating Sharon (Mira Sorvino) but he is still hung up on his high school girl friend Darian (Lauren Holly); who is married with a kid, but still hung up on Tommy and ready to bed him at any opportunity. Sharon loves Tommy, but she is not sure how much longer she can take the Darian issue.

Paul (Michael Rapaport) has been dumped by Jan, his girlfriend of 7 years (Martha Plimpton) – because he wouldn’t make a commitment. She is now seeing another guy and this is handled “very maturely” by Paul whose job is to clear up snow-blocked patios but keeps blocking her garage door with snow and by trying to force a brown wedding ring on her. He has a dog called Elle MacPherson and has his room walls covered with posters of models.

Michael (Noah Emmerich) is the happier one. He has turned into the perfect family man, raising his two young kids with his wife, and seeming to be OK with domestic bliss, which is really pissing of Paul –who thinks men do deserve supermodels.

Willie finds his old house and his residents pretty much the same- his father (Richard Bright) still loves TV and his younger brother Bobby (David Arquette) is pretty much in his own world. However change comes in the form of the 13-year-old next door neigbor girl named Marty (Natalie Portman). She is smart, friendly, upfront and likable. So likeable in fact that Willie starts wishing he wasn’t 29. He is also thinking that her older version could actually be his soulmate.

Things get even more complicated when their favorite bar owner Stinky (Pruitt Taylor Vince)’s gorgeous cousin Andera (Uma Thurman) comes for a visit. All the gang pretty much wants to be around her. Will the gang be able to grow up a little before their high school reunion comes up?

***

This is a wonderful “coming of age” story. It is not about teens turning into adults, but young adults who have problems of letting their teens/younger versions without responsibilities go.  Granted, it is strength is not in the originality of the characters or the story, but in the lovely story-telling and more than impressive cast. The dialogue is also very fun.

Beautiful Girls is a drama/comedy/romance, but I would call it a relationship genre, if there was one. Because it is about relationships- romantic/family/friendships and also about the characters’ relationships with life. It has pretty decent jokes and entertaining moments. The comedy is more dominant than the emotional tones and thankfully nothing is overdone. It is lovely to see all of these actors in one movie and all of them so young. See this.

Directed by Ted Demme, written by Scott Rosenberg 7.1 on IMDB, voted by over 15,000 people.

Selection of Favorite Lines

Rosie O’Donnell’s character is educating” Wilie (Timothy Hutton) and Tommy (Matt Dillon) about life:

Gina: I’m finished speaking to both of you okay? You’re both fucking insane. You want to know what your problem is? MTV, Playboy, and Madison fucking Avenue. Yes. Let me explain something to you, ok? Girls with big tits have big asses. Girls with little tits have little asses. That’s the way it goes. God doesn’t fuck around; he’s a fair guy. He gave the fatties big, beautiful tits and the skinnies little tiny niddlers. It’s not my rule. If you don’t like it, call him.

***

Stinky (on Andera, played by Uma Thurman) Do you see her face? Girls like that are born with a boyfriend.

***

Willie: I was jealous of a little kid on a bike, because he gets to be her age, and I’m this vile old man. Like that guy, what’s-his-name…
Michael ‘Mo’ Morris: Roman Polanski?

Willie (on Marty): You just want to say to her, in all sincerity, take me with you when you go

Michael: Willie, she was a zigot when you were in the 7th grade!

***

Tommy: No, Paul is not my friend. He lives in my house. I got cockroaches, I got termites… I got Paul.

Fun Facts

–          Timothy Hutton is 36 in the film. Natalie is 15.

–          This is the second time 12/13 year-old character of Natalie Portman fascinates an adult male. The other movie is Léon.

–          Lauren Holly co-stars in this movie with David Arquette, actress Courteney Cox’s husband. Courteney Cox met David Arquette on the set of scream. Lauren had turned the role Courteney played in Ace Ventura, opposite Jim Carrey. But Lauren later played in Dumb and Dumber opposite Jim Carrey. The two later got married

Other Posts on the Cast Members

Natalie Portman

Closer starring Natalie Portman, Jude Law, Clive Owen and Julia Roberts

Noah Emmerich

Pride and Glory starring Edward Norton, Colin Farrell, Noah Emmerich and Jon Voight

Beyond Borders starring Clive Owen, Angelina Jolie and Noah Emmerich

Matt Dilllon

In and Out starring Kevin Kline, Joan Cusack, Matt Dillon and Tom Selleck

Timothy Hutton

The Absolute Timothy Hutton Trivia: 18 Facts About Leverage Star Timothy Hutton

City of Industry starring Harvey Keitel, Stephen Dorff and Timothy Hutton

The Killing Room starring Timothy Hutton

Ordinary People starring Timothy Hutton, Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore and Judd Hirsch

Serious Moonlight starring Timothy Hutton and Meg Ryan

Taps starring Timothy Hutton, Tom Cruise and Sean Penn

Leverage TV Series starring Timothy Hutton

The Ghost Writer starring Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan. Feat. Timothy Hutton

The Good Shepherd starring Matt Damon and Angelina Jolie. Feat. Timothy Hutton

Uma Thurman

10 Celebrity Couple Break-Ups You May Not Have Seen Coming

10 Most Entertaining Sci-fi Movies: Favorite Sci-fi Movies of a Non-fan

Looking Up: Tall Girls Dating

The Accidental Husband starring Uma Thurman, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Colin Firth

Pulp Fiction

The Life Before Her Eyes

Looking Up: Tall Girls Dating

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Annabeth Gish, beautfiul girls movie, beautiful girls, comedy, David Arquette, Lauren Holly, Martha Plimpton, Matt Dillon, Max Perlich, Michael Rapaport, Mira Sorvino, movies, Natalie Portman, Noah Emmerich, Pruitt Taylor Vince, Rosie O’Donnell, Scott Rosenberg, ted demme, Timothy Hutton, timothy hutton movies, Uma Thurman

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