Jason Bateman | pinartarhan.com

State of Play starring Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel Mcadams and Helen Mirren

Posted on June 3, 2012 Written by ripitup

Also feat. Robin Wright, Jason Bateman & Jeff Daniels

State of Play starring Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel Mcadams and Helen Mirren feat. Robin Wright, Jason Bateman & Jeff Daniels. Image via movie-list.com

Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) is a smart and successful congressman investigating private “mercenary-providing” companies. His good reputation goes down the drain, however, when his assistant is killed, and it is revealed that they were having an affair.

A grieving Stephen has his career and marriage on the line and the only person who can help him is his old university friend, journalist for the Washington Globe, Cal (Russell Crowe). As he digs more into the story, initially to help Stephen get out of the mess, he stumbles into political agendas, conflicts of interest (including his own) and life-risking situations.

Throw in a full-brown government-related conspiracy, emotional baggage between Cal and Stephen’s wife (Robin Wright), a blogger-turning-into-a-reporter named Della (Rachel McAdams) helping Cal, an ambitious editor (Helen Mirren) getting impatient and caring less about loyalties and manners and more about the juice and you have a very entertaining and gripping political thriller, with the stellar cast as a bonus.

State of Play flows like a well-written novel: slower at times, but only to build up for the more significant upcoming scenes and/or to make things even more complicated.

Why I Loved State of Play

– All characters are pretty much as grey as it gets, although Rachel McAdams’ character seems to evolve and learn the most.

– Cal does try to protect his friend from a downfall- but his sense of loyalty hasn’t stopped him from sleeping with his wife in the past.

– The enthusiastic blogger turns into a reporter who cares about the ethics and the safety of the others more than the seasoned reporters she is working with.

– It’s great that there is no romance between Cal and Della – in fact, Cal’s personal life is pretty much doomed but he has no intention of doing anything about it. He has a story to write.

– The more desperate Della and Cal get, the more creative they get in getting their information and evidence.

– Nothing is ever what it seems- except when it comes to the Cal, Della and Cameron (Helen Mirren) who might make some bad decisions, border on breaking the law and disagree on a lot of things.

– The journalist-aka the protagonist- is a not a fit, muscular guy who can take care of himself.

– The cast.

Well, there are more, but these are the first that came to my mind. It is not perfect, but it is pretty damn good. Rated at 7.2 on IMDB – voted by over 62.000 people. 8/10 from me.

Directed by Kevin MacDonald (Last King of Scotland). Written by Matthew Michael Carnahan (The Kingdom, Lions for Lambs) , Tony Gilroy (Duplicity) and Billy Ray- based on the series by Paul Abbott.

The Switch starring Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston & Patrick Wilson

Posted on August 17, 2011 Written by ripitup

The Switch starring Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Patrick Wilson, Jeff Goldblum & Juliettte Lewis.

Wally (Jason Bateman) doesn’t have much in his life apart from his career, and his best friend Kassie (Jennifer Aniston). He is pretty hopeless in the romance department, but he doesn’t really get depressed over his life until Kassie drops a bombshell on him: She wants a baby now and she is determined that the father will be someone she won’t have to deal with, despite Wally’s oppositions.

Wally can’t change her mind, and at a drunken moment, he “loses” the cute donor Roland (Patrick Wilson)’s sperm. So he replaces it with his own…And he doesn’t remember this the next day.

He gets another bombshell when Kassie announces that she is pregnant, and she is moving to another state to be with her parents.

7 years later, Kassie moves back to New York with her 7 year old son Sebastian (Thomas Robinson), and she can’t wait for Wally and her kid to bond. Wally is at first intimated with extremely strange and neurotic boy, but then he realizes that they have a lot in common and they’ve started to get along together. Unfortunately for him and Wally, Roland is back in the picture and ready to court Kassie, and hang out with who he believes to be his son…

It doesn’t help matters that Wally has remembered what he might have done all those years ago, and that Kassie might be the one. Now how do you give your best friend two earth-shattering news? And not lose her, and your kid, in the process?

The Switch is a fun, albeit slow at times, drama/comedy. It is not a romantic comedy in the traditional sense. Sure, the ending is blindingly obvious even from the trailer. But it is not the crazy comedy it was advertised to be, or the romantic comedy with the focus on Jennifer Aniston.

It is more about Wally, and then Wally and Sebastian. It’s Wally’s emotional and hilarious journey as he realizes a lot of things about life, being a parent, being a friend and well…the romantic guy who’d just have to speak up with the worst timing in the world.

Jennifer Aniston haters can relax as Jason Bateman is the focus of the film. I really like Aniston, but this is a Bateman flick. His on-screen relationship with Thomas Robinson is funny, touching, awkward and cute all at the same time. Sure, Bateman makes us laugh and grin, but most of the time he makes us feel emotional. Patrick Wilson, Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis hang around for comedic relief, as Aniston serves as the female romantic lead.

No, it is not that funny, and it is not even very romantic. But it is very sweet, sometimes quirky and enjoyable.

Also on Jennifer Aniston:

Jennifer Aniston Trivia: 22 Facts About The World’s Most Popular Friend Jennifer Aniston

The Bounty Hunter

Love Happens

Marley and Me

He’s Just Not That Into You

Hollywood Stars in Friends

Derailed

Also on Patrk Wilson

Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton & Patrick Wilson

The A-Team starring Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper, Jessica Biel, Patrick Wilson, Sharlto Copley & Quinton Rampage Jackson

Watchmen starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Malin Akerman, Matthew Goode, Jackie Earle Haley and Patrick Wilson

Patrick Wilson Trivia

No Strings Attached, The Switch and Morning Glory: 3 Romantic Comedies to Anticipate

Posted on November 9, 2010 Written by ripitup

No Strings Attached starring Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher

Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher in No Strings Attached

The storyline is obviously ordinary and predictable but if you like the actors, this one seems to be having some nice jokes and it is also refreshing that it is the girl who resists mixing romantic feelings with the sexual ones. Here’s the plot:

Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman are longtime friends and at some point they realize that they are the best candidates for each other when it comes to a non-problematic, non-complicated no strings attached sex. But just like many friends with benefits arrangements in real life and fictional world, things will get complicated. We will just have to see if this one will dare to pull a 500 Days of Summer type of ending…

No Strings Attached Trailer:

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ubfcfs98MBw [/pro-player]

Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton, Harrison Ford & Patrick Wilson

Morning Glory starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton and Patrick Wilson. Also featuring Jeff Goldblum.

Rachel McAdams plays a young and ambitious news producer who is happy to land a job, despite she is warned by her boss (Jeff Goldblum) that she will be underpaid, overworked and will have a really hard time. She is too over-the-moon to turn this opportunity down. The show is hosted by the eccentric Diane Keaton and Rachel’s job certainly doesn’t get any easier when she decides to hire even the more eccentric, veteran host Harrison Ford, who thinks he is just too good for the position. In addition to her ever-challenging job, her romance with a co-worker (Patrick Wilson) might not make her life any easier either.

A sweet comedy with a touch of romance, true-to-life career ups and downs; including a great friendship story….I love the cast and I so can relate to the plot. I’ll be seeing this movie.

Morning Glory Trailer

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9lWUqraDoU [/pro-player]

The Switch starring Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Patrick Wilson, Juliette Lewis & Jeff Goldblum

The Switch Movie starring Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Patrick Wilson, Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis

Whether I will wait for the DVD or just see it at the theaters is irrelevant. I will watch this film. Yes, all Jennifer Aniston-haters, you’re welcome to look down on me for being enthusiastic about her new romcom. But frankly, even though I agree that Jen needs diversity in her career, romcom is a profitable genre, it has a certain audience and a good one can offer a great escapism and there is no reason you can’t enjoy it if you like the actors. And even if you despise Jennifer Aniston, have you seen the rest of the cast?

And I did have a real laugh (during the trailer) at how Jason Bateman ends up making the switch and then forgets about it. Sure, the fact that he had feelings for his friend for 13 years and is only just realizing it goes against all my experience and beliefs about relationships and love, but hey, we watched Friends. We can handle this storyline.

And yes, I wish I could see more of Patrick Wilson and Jeff Goldblum and have loved Juliette Lewis since What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and Cape Fear.

The Switch Trailer

[pro-player width=’530′ height=’253′ type=’video’]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEYqgyXyk9A [/pro-player]

Note: You can watch the trailers on IMDB by clicking on the links below. Just incase youtube videos don’t work for some reason.

IMDB Trailer Links

No Strings Attached

Morning Glory

The Switch

Up in the Air starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick

Posted on March 13, 2010 Written by ripitup

Up in the Air, starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick. Emotional and fun. Loved to see George doing some soul-searching. image via newsblaze.com

Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) leads most of his life up in the air, literally. His job description mostly is about flying over to whatever company needs his services and firing the employees that need to be fired. He does it with style, grace and professionalism, and without really letting it get to him. He absolutely loves the traveling and the benefits it brings him. This job might have been depressing or tiresome for some people, but strangely Ryan lives for it.

One day he meets a beautiful frequent business traveler named Alex (Vera Farmiga) and they hit it off, starting a very smooth casual relationship. Ryan’s lifestyle is not questioned at all by her.

The only flaw in Ryan’s life comes through in the shape of another woman called Natalie (Anna Kendrick). Ryan’s boss (Jason Bateman) is very impressed by this young and ambitious girl and her “innovative ideas. She thinks firing people can be done on the ground, through technology. From then on, Ryan starts to mentor Natalie unwillingly, trying to prove why the old school methods are best. But of course a young, hopeless romantic versus an older, experienced, proud-to-be-single guy brings out many clashes and makes out for a fun and emotional journey where both will learn some stuff.

While Up in the Air has its romantic moments, emotional realizations and some relationships going on about it, it is not about two people about finding love. This is not a love story or a story about love. This is a story about a journey, being mostly Ryan’s. It is fun to see George Clooney play a seemingly simple but yet so endearingly flawed and complicated character. I missed seeing him be the humane leading man. I had had too much Clooney after Oceans 11,12 and 13. Good to have him in a more sincere production.

I am not saying it doesn’t have clichés. But then again, they are only necessary and they are subtly and entertainingly played. So, it is all good. The movie is based on the novel by Walter Kim (who also wrote Thumbsucker). It is adapted to the screen by director Jason Reitman (Juno, Thank You for Smoking) and Sheldon Turner. The cast is pretty good. Frankly, I barely recognized Anna Kendrick. I knew she was so familiar, but I couldn’t believe she was one of the actors in the Twilight saga. Nice job, Anna.

The movie was nominated for 6 Oscars this year: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actress (Both Kendrick and Farmiga), Best Actor (George Clooney), Best Director and Best Film. Though it didn’t receive any Academy Awards, it won many awards- including a BAFTA for Best Adapted Screenplay.

A bittersweet movie about life, goals, careers, matters of the heart and well…everything in between. It reminds me of Cameron Crowe movies (Jerry Maguire, for instance) and just like I love Crowe, I loved Up in the Air. It might make you evaluate your life or fear about your job many times, though.

7.9 on IMDB. Fair enough.

Other Posts on George Clooney:

The American starring George Clooney, Violante Placido & Thekla Reuten

What Editors Can Learn from the Movie Up in the Air – a post for writers, inspired by the film

Friends Trivia: Monica Geller (Courteney Cox)’s Boyfriends 2 feat. George Clooney

State of Play starring Russell Crowe, Ben Affleck, Rachel Mcadams and Helen Mirren

Other Posts on The Cast

Russell Crowe:

Ben Affleck:

Rachel McAdams

The Switch starring Jason Bateman, Jennifer Aniston & Patrick Wilson

No Strings Attached, The Switch and Morning Glory: 3 Romantic Comedies to Anticipate

Up in the Air starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga and Anna Kendrick