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Stone starring Edward Norton, Robert De Niro, Milla Jovovich & Frances Conroy

Posted on January 6, 2011 Written by ripitup

Stone starring Edward Norton, Robert De Niro, Milla Jovovich & Frances Conroy

Whoa. I just watched Stone and I feel a huge burden was lifted off my shoulders. Stone ended up being one of the worst disappointments ever.

I admit I had high expectations. Although I didn’t expect an original plot, I wanted interesting characters, a good direction (John Curran was directing) and a flowing story. I got none.

Here’s what happens in the film:

Stone (Edward Norton) is a convict, serving time for arson. He has to persuade the seasoned parole officer Jack (Robert De Niro) that he deserves early freedom. But he believes that it will be easier if his gorgeous wife Lucetta (Milla Jovovich) seduces Jack as well.

At first Jack is wary and unresponsive to Lucetta, but it doesn’t take that long for her to get him to have sex with her. But with two people as unstable as Lucetta and Stone, can Jack prevent his wife (Frances Conroy) from finding out?

Ok, the plot did seem entirely predictable before watching but I was relying on the director John Curran to make it worth. After all, he and Edward Norton gave us the wonderful The Painted Veil. But while not being as predictable as anticipated, Stone doesn’t deserve the label thriller at all. Yes, it is drama but I am not sure it even deserves that title. After all dramas are supposed to give you at least one character worth worrying about? Worth caring for?

Jack lives with his depressed, over-religious wife. But he alone is the one to blame for such a soulless existence. He treated his wife like she wasn’t even there over 4 decades ago and when she wanted to leave, he almost threw their kid out of the window. No, this really happened. He literally took his own child from the bed and threatened to throw her out! His wife freaked and stayed. And that scene was the only interesting scene of the movie.

Milla Jovovich plays Stone’s sex-crazed wife who seems to be mad about her husband- so mad in fact that she would seduce the much older Stone. But even before Stone, she gets to f*** some guy out of the blue. And in the daytime, she is a school teacher, teaching young children. Ouch.

And Stone sounds like stoned through the whole movie. Yes, Edward creatively invents a character but his rants grow old and boring pretty quickly.

The movie is soulless and well, I mostly blame it on the writer Angus MacLachlan.

Frankly, there are tens of other Norton and De Niro movies you should watch before you should waste time on this one. And hey, if you are in the mood for Norton’s weird rants, and all the weird religious talk on the radio…

Currently, at 6.0 on IMDB, it is annoyingly overrated. And this is coming from a major Norton fan.

Also on Edward Norton

Edward Norton Trivia

Leaves of Grass

Kingdom of Heaven

Down in the Valley

25th Hour

Fight Club

The Illusionist

The Painted Veil

American History X

Primal Fear

The Incredible Hulk

Pride and Glory

Also on Robert De Niro

Coming Soon: Limitless starring Bradley Cooper & Robert De Niro

City by the Sea starring Robert De Niro, Frances McDormand and James Franco

Stardust, The Air I Breathe, Playing by Heart, The Good Shepherd, Hairspray & He’s Just Not That Into You: 6 Good Movies with Brilliant Casts

20 Reasons to Love Stardust- feat. Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, Robert De Niro & Charlie Cox

Also on Milla Jovovich

A Perfect Getaway starring Timothy Olyphant, Steve Zahn & Milla Jovovich

Leaves of Grass starring Edward Norton, Tim Blake Nelson and Keri Russell

Posted on March 27, 2010 Written by ripitup

2009- Written and Directed by Tim Blake Nelson

Billy Kincaid (Edward Norton) is an established, respected and published philosophy professor. He is adored by his students-maybe too adored- and his future definitely looks bright. And most importantly, he has done a good job avoiding his family roots so far.

His mother (Susan Sarandon) and identical twin brother Brady (yep, of coure Norton) still live in Oklahoma and he hasn’t spoken to them in years. After all, Brady is a pot dealer and proud of his lifestyle. But when Brady’s threatened by the big guys, he finds the perfect solution. He tricks his brother into coming home. Billy’s arrival resurface family issues while Brady continues to implant his more than flawed plan. But Brady won’t be the only one complicating Bill’s life…

This movie is fun, as long as you don’t get too excited by all the labels IMDB has put on it. It says comedy/drama/thriller/crime Yes, it has many funny moments and some romantic scenes. But this is not an action movie. It is a fun drama (or call it a dramedy if you like) worth watching especially for Edward Norton fans.

Norton plays two opposite characters with brilliance. Plus, I like Susan Sarandon and can’t still get used to her playing the mother of a grown man. Yeah, I am fully aware that she is in her 60s now but she still looks really youtful and pretty. Hell, I wouldn’t mind if she had played Norton’s love interest, let alone her mother. But then again, Edward doesn’t exactly look over 30 so they make a good mother-son duo.

Bill’s love interest is Keri Russell (August Rush, Felicity, Bedtime Stories) and Brady’s pregnant girlfriend is played by Melanie Lynskey (Up in the Air). Richard Dreyfuss appears in a small role but his character is one of the most vital ones. After all, all hell starts to break loose due to him. Yes, Dreyfuss makes an impression again. But for me his best will always be Mr. Holland’s Opus.

All in all: Good cast and fun script. It is not Edward’s best film but it is worth watching nonetheless.

7.2 on IMDB.

7 from me.

Leaves of Grass starring Edward Norton, Keri Russell and Susan Sarandon — Which movie poster do you like better? I think both suit the different moods and scenes of the film. Photo: impawards.com.

Other Edward Norton Movies

Kingdom of Heaven

Down in the Valley

25th Hour

Fight Club

The Illusionist

The Painted Veil

American History X

Primal Fear

The Incredible Hulk

Pride and Glory

Whose job is related to their education anyway?

Posted on March 8, 2010 Written by ripitup

Did you know that:

* Gerard Butler has a law degree?

* Edward Norton is a history graduate?

* Hugh Laurie studied anthropology?

* Jurassic Park author Michael Crichton studied medicine?

Gerard Butler studied law in Scotland. His grades were high too. But he always wanted to be an actor and he loved rocknroll and he loved to party. With characteristics like these, you don't survive in the office for long. He eventually got fired and decided to follow of his dreams.

It is not just about artists, of course. Most of us find a university degree useful. Let’s face it, even if we don’t like our degree, a BA at least gives us a minor degree of security and gets our parents off our backs. My dad would feel more comfortable if I worked for a corporation rather than for myself. But he can’t fight with my rationalization:

“Dad, I studied Advertising and Business, I have work experience and my CV is pretty OK for a 25-year-old. There is not a better time to follow my dreams (which are about earning a full-time income as a writer ((writing whatever I want)). It is not just my dad who is surprised at my chosen path of career. Even though everybody knew I wrote all the time, they believed I would write in my free time while I got a nice office gig. Well, the idea didn’t sound half-bad until I actually went out and got an office job. I hated it and none of my friends has yet to find a job they enjoyed. They find freelancing scary and most see my educational background irrelevant. Right! Like a background in marketing would never helped a writer.

I just finished writing a series of articles for an online publication. Subject? Business tips. Stuff I learned 5 years ago. But obviously, not everyone wants to or needs to use their major. So as far as relevance go, I am not doing badly. My friends mostly have other stories though:

– I have a friend who graduated from civil engineering and is working for a record company. He also works as a DJ in his part-time. He couldn’t be happier.

– Another friend graduated from biology and although she would rather work in a lab or as an assistant teacher, she is making a decent income, has over a year of experience in sales and she just got a company car. I can’t say her biology training never comes in handy. It is just not used in the way she imagined it.

– Another friend is working as a TA but she miserable with the professor who just prevents any sort of personal or professional progress for her.

– Another civil engineer is working as one and hates his hours and would rather work 9 to 5 for a bank as a consultant for buildings. Yeah, that’s not exactly what he had in mind in college….

Frankly, I could on forever. Why we feel we need to or want to take different paths is a different issue. Maybe it is the subject for another article. But after I met an MBA student with a BA in sociology, I decided it was time to write this article.

How about you? Your friends? Is their work-related to their education? Are they happy or dissatisfied with this? What about the people you’ve recently met?

Death to Smoochy starring Edward Norton, Robin Williams and Danny DeVito

Posted on March 8, 2010 Written by ripitup

Death to Smoochy with Edward Norton, Robin Williams, Danny DeVito, Catherine Keener and Jon Stewart.

One of the times Edward Norton was on Conan O’Brien, they were talking about how intense his roles were. Edward just found it really amusing that people found him intimidating. Well, you might remember his complicated role in Fight Club and even more powerful role in American History X. But Edward points out his role in the pink suit in this film. That’s right. Edward spends a lot of time in his gigantic pink rhino suit in Death to Smoochy, as a host for a children TV show:

When Rainbow Randolph (Robin Williams) is caught during an unethical bribe thingy, his days as an adored kids show star days end. The channel is forced to find a host that’s squeaky clean and that’s when the producers (Catherine Keener and Jon Stewart) unwillingly hire Sheldon (Norton) who happens to be ultra ethical and morally sound. He annoys the hell out of Nora (Catherine Keener), one of the network producers.

However Nora’s monetary concerns and her contempt towards him are the least of his problems: Randolph is furious and obsessed with getting rid of Sheldon to get his old gig back. A shady organization wants him out and there is an Irish mob gang with some special demands. Now, how the hell will Sheldon remain true to himself with all these people around?

First, let’s state that this is an absurd, dark comedy with some edgy and over-the-top characters. In fact, all of the characters are over the top and this gives the movie some hilarious and amusing moments. Sure, there are some slow moments but overall, it is very entertaining. Lots of fun in an exaggerated world. Be warned. This movie is not for everyone. Especially if you don’t want Norton in such a comedy. Directed by Danny DeVito, who also plays yet another character with questionable motives.

OTHER NORTON FILMS:

Kingdom of Heaven

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/kingdom-of-heaven/

Down in the Valley

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/down-in-the-valley/

The Incredible Hulk

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/the-incredible-hulk/

Pride and Glory:

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/pride-and-glory-with-edward-norton-and-colin-farrell/

25th Hour:

https://pinartarhan.com/blog/25th-hour-with-edward-norton/

The Illusionist: