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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.

*

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?

*

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

The Perfect Score starring Chris Evans, Bryan Greenberg & Scarlett Johannson

Posted on February 16, 2012 Written by ripitup

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The Perfect Score Plot

Best friends Kyle (Chris Evans) and Matty (Bryan Greenberg) aren’t exactly looking forward to taking their SATS. Kyle is good in class, but there is no way his scores will get him into his dream school Cornell. Matty needs to get into Mary’s, because his girlfriend Sandy is there, but it doesn’t look possible.

Still, when first Matty suggests stealing the exam answers, Kyle isn’t on board. But when he realizes that SAT is a big profit machine to everyone involved, and nobody seems to care that it is affecting the lives of the students so dramatically. This makes Kyle angry enough to want to steal the answers, but they will definitely need the help of the rebel daughter (Francesca-played by Scarlett Johansson) of the owner of the building where results are kept.

Matty would rather keep the team a trio, but Kyle has already mentioned this to the honor student Anna (Erika Christensen), who just can’t seem to get near her desired score for Brown. And when the pot-smoking weirdo Roy overhears the conversation and Anna brings in the basketball player Desmond who needs the answers as badly as they do, they finally have a team of 6 where the members don’t necessarily trust each other.

Still, Kyle manages to come up with the perfect plan, and the application of the plan brings members closer. But have they really thought everything through? Can they really pull it off?

*

FUN ENOUGH TO WATCH

The Perfect Score is a lovely heist comedy with some action, romance and interesting characters. Roy has been a little overused and his presence can get a bit annoying, but it all blends into the fun relationships and moments of the movie.

It is nostalgic to see Chris Evans, Bryan Greenberg and Scarlett Johansson in high school roles-especially since the last time I saw Evans he was Captain America, Bryan was the jerk doctor in Friends with Benefits and Scarlett was once again Black Widow, this time for The Avengers.

It is not hilarious, but it is very enjoyable and highly entertaining. I have to say anyone who rated it below 6 doesn’t just remember what it was to be a high school senior under all that pressure. Granted, we didn’t try to steal the answers, but surely many fantasized about finding a way to bypass the ridiculous exam(s) that determine our future.

And The Perfect Score is just that: a fun fantasy with fun characters, where two of its actors really scored big time in Hollywood. Worth watching, especially if you agree SAT should stand for suck-a** test….(not a name I came up with.: )

Fun note:

Matthew Lillard plays Kyle’s older loser brother who lives above his parents’ garage and thinks it is cool to play Smoke on the Water with the help of the dryer buzzing.

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Bryan Greenberg, buy the perfect score, Chris Evans, chris evans movies, comedy, crime, Erika Christensen, matthew lillard, movies, Scarlett Johannson, Scarlett Johannson movies, Scarlett johannson the perfect score, The Perfect Score, the perfect score 2004 movie, the perfect score cast, the perfect score chris evans, the perfect score dvd, the perfect score movie, the perfect score on amazon

Soon: Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell& Anna Paquin

Posted on February 23, 2011 Written by ripitup

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Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin.
Scream 4 starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, David Arquette. Feat. Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin. Image via moviepostershop.com

Seriously? Another one? Coming to the theaters in April, we are faced with the 4th and hopefully the last installment of Wes Craven’s Scream saga.

The first Scream was fun. It was entertaining, a little refreshing and well, thrilling enough. It was 1996 and director Wes Craven and screenwriter Kevin Williamson had created a nice teen-slasher that had a pretty cool cast too: Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard.

Well, with the exception of Skeet and Matthew, Courteney’s news reporter Gale, David’s Deputy Dewey and then student Sydney made it to Scream 2. Then 3 and finally, to Scream 4.

While I don’t hold a grudge against all sequels as a habit, horror/thrillers usually have a lesser chance of making the audiences happier as opposed to action or comedy flicks. Notice how Scream 1 started with 7.2 on IMDB and Scream 3 is currently at 5.3. I don’t necessarily always agree with the user ratings there, but this sounds fair- if not a little too generous.

But of course when you make a 4th film, ,it is only a good marketing plan to add more famous people to the cast like Adam Brody, Hayden Panettiere, Emma Roberts, Kristen Bell and Anna Paquin – and I didn’t notice half of them in the trailer.

It wasn’t just Scream that failed with the sequels, by the way. Horror-films mockery

Scary Movie was, despite being a little too crude at times, was hilarious. I barely remember Scary Movie 2 and 3 and I didn’t bother to see 4th.

So back to Scream 4. We’ve another mask-wearing psycho (or maybe more than one) with, a ridiculous motive, hunting after the cast. We will see if Neve Campell will survive. But I hope not because it just might indicate a 5th film.

I am really not excited about Scream 4. Are you?

Fun notes:

* Courteney Cox and David Arquette met in 1996, during the making of the first Scream movie. They got married in 1999 and separated in 2010. So yep, the Scream saga outlasted their relationship.

* Courteney Cox isn’t the only Friends cast member Neve Campbell co-starred in a movie with. She also has a movie with Matthew Perry.

* Kevin Williamson is one of the developers & writers of the popular series The Vampire Diaries.

Also on Courteney Cox:

Courteney Cox Trivia

Cougar Town starring Courteney Cox, Josh Hopkins, Dan Byrd, Busy Phillips & Josh Hopkins

Hollywood Stars in Friends

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Adam Brody, Anna Paquin, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, horror, Kevin Williamson, Kristen Bell, matthew lillard, Neve Campbell, scary movie, scream 4, scream 4 cast, Scream 4 movie, scream movies, Skeet Ulrich, teen slasher, thriller, wes craven

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

Posted on December 9, 2010 Written by ripitup

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

Plot

Matthew (Josh Hartnett) has a promising career in advertising and a beautiful girlfriend named Rebecca (Jessica Paré). However he is unsure about proposing, as deep down, he has never gotten over the love of his life, Lisa (Diane Kruger). She has left him without saying anything 2 years ago. When he thinks he saw her at a restaurant, he decides to ditch his business trip and look for her. The clues take him to a hotel and then an apartment. There he gets a real surprise, because the woman living there isn’t his Lisa but a brunette who claims that her name is Lisa (Rose Byrne). She also happens to be wearing Lisa’s clothes and shoes…

Matt has also run into his old friend Luke (Matthew Lillard) who runs a shoe shop and knows what Lisa meant to him. But he thinks that Matt’s quest for Lisa is crazy and he is more concerned with his love life. Despite pretending to be a player, he is actually a nice and decent guy with a huge crush on Alex, a theater actress. Alex’s behavior is highly unpredictable for reasons Luke might never find out. Alex can be the key to everything mysterious about Lisa’s disappearance. But will Matt be able to find out?

Wicker Park is a really solid mystery/romance. It is just different. It is very emotional and revolves around the 4 characters, especially Matthew, Alex and Lisa. It is a gripping drama romance with some thriller-like elements and its characters are just deliciously flawed. All of the main characters make bad choices, act stupidly and/or naively and/or selfishly. They also have redeeming qualities that make us feel for them. The music is really good (feat. Stereophonics, Coldplay, The White Stripes and more).  I’d say that it is one of those rare romance movies where cynics and romantics will both have a good time.

The bad things? Oh, the characters are sometimes so monumentally stupid that it makes you want to smack them. And there is this whole string of (bad) coincidences that don’t always feel natural. And Matt is the right guy for only Lisa. For any other girl, he is one of the worst choices. So this is not a romance film where I will just talk about how unrealistically awesome the protagonist is. Because he is a very real character. So yes, the movie has its flaws but character development and a decent dose of realism are definitely not among them.

Background

Yes, the script is not technically original as It is based on the 1996 French film L’ Appartment starring Star Romane Bohringer, Vincent Cassel, Jean-Philippe Écoffey and Monica Belluci. It was written & directed by Gilles Mimount.

This 2004 American version was written by Brandon Boyce and directed by Paul McGuigan (Push, Lucky Number Slevin). I’ll see the original French film but if you haven’t already seen it, this version is pretty good.

Currently rated 6.8 on IMDB. L’ Appartement is rated 7.6. For Wicker Park, my vote is a solid 7, and in some aspects even 7.5.

Fun note: Vincent Cassel and Monica Belluci, the two starring actors of L’ Appartement,got married in 1999, 3 years after the making of the film. They have 2 kids together.

Other Diane Kruger Movies
The Hunting Party starring Richard Gere, Jesse Eisenberg & Terrence Howard. Feat. Kruger
Copying Beethoven starring Diane Kruger & Ed Harris
Other Josh Hartnett Films and Posts
40 Days and 40 Nights starring Josh Hartnett & Shannyn Sossamon
Hollywood’s Tall Actors feat. Hartnett, Ben Affleck, Ryan Reynolds& more
Rose Byrne
Damages TV Show Review – starring Rose Byrne and Glenn Close
Adam starring Hugh Dancy and Rose Byrne

 

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Filed Under: Movies and Actors Tagged With: Diane Kruger, drama, Gilles Mimouni, Jessica Paré, Josh Hartnett, l’appartement, l’appartement film, matthew lillard, monica belluci, mystery movies, Paul McGuigan, romance, Romane Bohringer, Rose Byrne, Vincent Cassel, wicker park, wicker park movie

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