"Do you have a thing for my sister?"

Your Sister's Sister: starring Emily Blunt, Mark Duplass, and Rosemarie DeWitt.

The film begins with a memorial for Tom. Iris (Emily Blunt) is Tom's former girlfriend. Jack (Mark Duplass) is Tom's brother and Iris' best friend. Jack has fallen apart since the death of his brother.  In an effort to help him redirect his course in life, Iris offers Jack the use of her father's cabin.  Unbeknownst to Iris and Jack, Iris' sister, Hannah (Rosemarie DeWitt) is also occupying the cabin. Jack suprises Hannah who is recovering from a break up from a seven year relationship.

The film is a distorted love triangle.  Iris is in love with Jack, but hasn't told him. Jack has a thing for Iris but feels his life is directionless and he cannot rope someone into his life. Hannah is a lesbian who wants a child desparately.  Jack and Hannah share a bottle of tequila and end up having the least glamorous sex in the world.  The next morning as a surprise Iris shows up at the cabin to keep Jack company and finds her sister present.  The next few days unfold with secrets being kept and revealed, childish pokes and adult pain.

I wanted to like this film. I really like Rosemarie DeWitt, check her out in the United States of Tara. But this film felt like an inde film. It dragged and dropped in places. It had an interesting idea but did not end well. The trailer caught most of the good moments in it. This is not worth seeing on the big screen or renting. Maybe worth a sit through if you catch it on tv. 

Brave - Emma Thompson, Kelly MacDonald, Billy Connolly

Merida is the daughter of a clan chief.  She is the oldest of four children. She has triplet brothers. Her mother is perpetually trying to instill in her the rules of being a lady. Her mother is in fact grooming her to take over as wife of the next clan chief. Her father is loud, a hunter, and slightly uncouth. Merida is rebellious teenager. She hunts, rides her horse, and has unruly hair.

This film focuses primarily on the relationship between Merida and her mother.  Merida attempts to avert what she sees as a terrible fate: marriage. Her wish is distorted and she ends up not only bonding with her mother but seeing her mother in a new light.

I really enjoy Pixar films. I like the Scottish tones, the red hair and the female protagonist. I also really enjoy family relationships and this one focuses on a mother and daughter. They fight the way parents and children do. For once, a film where the mother is still alive. Not only that she's trying to force her daughter to grow up and learn responsibility!

Watch this film, it's fun, predictable and a delight. The voices are great and while not exactly treading new ground it is still an enjoyable film. See it!

"I'm in transition"

Last Chance Harvey - Emma Thompson and Dustin Hoffman star.

Harvey is in London to celebrate his only daughter's wedding. His career seems on the verge of collapse. He exudes a subtle irritation by his mere presence. His ex-wife has moved on, remarried, and her new husband is all that Harvey is not.

Kate is a woman in her 40s who works as a statistician in the airport. She has a close relationship with her mother, semi-smothering but full of love connection. She is interested in finding love but is somewhat content with her lot in life.

The two eventually meet and Harvey realizes that Kate may be his last chance. She has not decided so swiftly that her life is in need of change.

This movie had many problems. But for once I can say I actually really liked the ending. The movie ended superbly. That rarely happens so I can't completely write the film off. I also can't quite place what I found so wrong with the film. The basic elements seem plausible/interesting. Perhaps there was enough back story or too much? I don't know. Catch this on tv.

"Good God, he licked me!" "Edward, don't lick Max."

Penelope - starring Christina Ricci and James MacAvoy. Along with Catherine O'Hara, Reese Witherspoon, and Peter Dinklage.

This is a modern day fairy tale. Penelope suffers from a curse cast upon her rich family several generations before her. A member of the family had an affair with the help and then slighted the maid by not marrying her. Her grandmother cursed the family stating that the next in line would look like a pig and not be "normal" until accepted by her own her kind.

Penelope's mother and father create a lovely world for her inside their mansion. As she grows up she learns to play instruments, reads, and deals with being couped up with little to no human interaction. Her mother is determined to break the curse and sets up meetings with eligible rich young men - Penelope's own kind.

There are several subplots: a jilted journalist, a non-understanding suitor and an understanding one. Eventually Penelope escapes her parent's cage and experiences the world at large and meets the carefree Reese Witherspoon.

I very much enjoyed this film. I liked the color, the story and the acting. It is a great movie about acceptance. The funny thing is that while watching the film you forget that Christina Ricci has a pig nose. It works. Delightful film.