The Young Victoria

The Young Victoria (2009)

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PG - 105 min - Biography, Drama, History, Romance - 6 March 2009
Big Blue Sky Rating : 7.2/10

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Director : Jean-Marc Vallée
Writers : Julian Fellowes
Stars : Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany, Miranda Richardson

Dominated by her possessive mother and her bullying consort, Conroy, since childhood, teen-aged Victoria refuses to allow them the power of acting as her regent in the last days of her uncle, William IV's rule. Her German cousin Albert is encouraged to court her for solely political motives but, following her accession at age eighteen, finds he is falling for her and is dismayed at her reliance on trusty Prime Minister Melbourne. Victoria is impressed by Albert's philanthropy which is akin to her own desire to help her subjects. However her loyalty to Melbourne, perceived as a self-seeker, almost causes a constitutional crisis and it is Albert who helps restore her self-confidence. She proposes and they marry, Albert proving himself not only a devoted spouse, prepared to take an assassin's bullet for her, but an agent of much-needed reform, finally endorsed by an admiring Melbourne.

Victorian Rebel without a Cause, but a Crown

Greetings again from the darkness. Emily Blunt would have stolen The Devil Wears Prada if not for the queen of screen, Meryl Streep. Here she competes with no one and does a nice job of carrying the film based on the early years of Queen Victoria. If you are rusty on your British sovereign history, she ruled from 1837-1901.

For 20 of these years, she was married to her true love, Prince Albert (played well by Rupert Friend). While the two meet as youngsters, the bond between them comes from their letters ... an early precursor to eHarmony?? We know Victoria mostly from royal portraits, so it's nice to see her as a rebellious youngster trying to learn the tricks of the trade, even while being manipulated like a pawn by her mother (Miranda Richardson) and her lover (Mark Strong). We get to see her tenacity blossom as she matures and literally grows into the monarchy.

While Ms. Blunt's performance is strong, Julian Fellowes' writing is not at the level of his previous work in Gosford Park. We do get some of the same power plays, but it is missing the nuances of that much better film.

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A Serious Man

A Serious Man (2009)

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R - 106 min - Comedy, Drama - 20 November 2009
Big Blue Sky Rating : 7.0/10

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Director : Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Writers : Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Stars : Michael Stuhlbarg, Richard Kind, Sari Lennick, Fred Melamed

Bloomington, Minnesota, 1967: Jewish physics lecturer Larry Gopnik is a serious and a very put-upon man. His daughter is stealing from him to save up for a nose job, his pot-head son, who gets stoned at his own bar-mitzvah, only wants him round to fix the TV aerial and his useless brother Arthur is an unwelcome house guest. But both Arthur and Larry get turfed out into a motel when Larry's wife Judy, who wants a divorce, moves her lover, Sy, into the house and even after Sy's death in a car crash they are still there. With lawyers' bills mounting for his divorce, Arthur's criminal court appearances and a land feud with a neighbour Larry is tempted to take the bribe offered by a student to give him an illegal exam pass mark. And the rabbis he visits for advice only dole out platitudes. Still God moves in mysterious - and not always pleasant - ways, as Larry and his family will find out.

Magnificent. The Coen Brothers take a detour.

Let me say up front that most fans of the Coen brothers' early films might be disappointed if they're expecting "Fargo", "The Big Lebowski" or even "O Brother". Unlike those movies, here we don't have a lot of plot, comedy or action. The message of the film is very challenging, and it requires a lot of thought to figure out what they're saying.

I'd say this movie is for fans of the recent American films "Synecdoche NY", "Doubt", and the recent Japanese films "Departures", "Yureru" and of course the classics by Kurosawa like "Rashomon". What I'm saying is that this is a film that tackles philosophical questions of perception, faith, and in particular, uncertainty.

If you've had some physics, you're in for a real treat because much of the theme centers around Schrödinger's "Uncertainty Principle", briefly touched upon in the Coens' excellent 2001 film "The Man Who Wasn't There". Here they give us a more powerful dose. If you've never heard of this principle, don't worry, you can look it up on Wikipedia or you can accept my synopsis of it, which I'll warn you might be flawed because I ain't no physicist:

The Uncertainty Principle (or "Schrödinger's Cat") proves mathematically that certain events are unknowable. It proposes the idea of a cat that might be alive or dead, but we cannot know without looking inside the cage. At the same time, the minute we look inside the cage, the cat will be killed by a toxic gas. The bottom line: we can't know the answer. Ever.

From there, the movie explores how different people react when confronted with the unknown. Some form prejudices. Some fall back on faith. Some become faithLESS. And some just don't care.

This is a beautifully crafted film that shows us the nature of human beings in that respect. No, there's not really a story. But it does even better than that: it challenges our minds to see elements of our own lives within the life of this ordinary schmuck. I am truly amazed at the Coens' accomplishment, and I hope they continue in this direction in the future, though I'm sure it may hurt their mainstream appeal.

If you see this film & like it, I think you'll really enjoy the other films I've listed as well as the Hungarian masterpiece "Werckmeister Harmonies", anything by Wim Wenders ("The End of Violence" touches on the same Uncertainty Principle) and Orson Welles' "The Trial".

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Crazy Heart

Crazy Heart (2009)

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R - 112 min - Drama, Music, Romance - 5 February 2010
Big Blue Sky Rating : 7.3/10

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Director : Scott Cooper
Writers : Scott Cooper, Thomas Cobb
Stars : Jeff Bridges, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Colin Farrell, James Keane

Bad Blake is a broken-down, hard-living country music singer who's had way too many marriages, far too many years on the road and one too many drinks way too many times. And yet, Bad can't help but reach for salvation with the help of Jean, a journalist who discovers the real man behind the musician.

Bridges at his best.

"Petition me no petitions, sir, to-day; Let other hours be set apart for business. To-day it is our pleasure to be drunk . . ." Henry Fielding, Tom Thumb, The Great

When a memorable performance transcends a mediocre plot, the result is a memorable role flanked by a forgettable film. Such is the case of Jeff Bridges as Bad Blake, a sodden wreck of a country singer still making a living playing at bars and bowling alleys in Crazy Heart, an apt title.

Not Garth Brooks or Willie Nelson, but well-known enough to be offered free booze and free ladies, 57 year old Bad is like his 30 year old pickup truck, still serviceable but ready to bust at any moment. Bridges is a believable singer/drunk, not overdoing either but pathetic enough for you to want to strangle some sense into him while he still can perform. And write songs—if he can get to them, especially at the encouragement of Tommy Sweet (a convincing, real life bad boy Colin Farrell), young country singer now flourishing partly because of Bad's good mentoring. The descent into cliché is quick as Santa Fe reporter Jane (Maggie Gyllenhaal) falls for him during an interview for her paper. She has a four-year old child—well, you can guess the rest of the film through romance and rehab but maybe not denouement.

The addition of one of the producers of the film, Robert Duvall, as Bad's friend and club owner Wayne, is a welcome allusion to Duvall's Oscar performance as country singer Mac Sledge in Tender Mercies. Add T Bone Burnett as a song writer and producer of the film and you have a promising pedigree. Unfortunately director/writer Scott Cooper may not have caught the fire of the original novel by Thomas Cobb.

I will nominate Bridges as one of the best actors of the year. That's the best I can offer you besides the New Mexico landscape and cloud dotted blue sky. As for watching another story about an alcoholic singer, I'll stick with Colin Firth drinking a little in A Single Man or Michael Sheen in the Damned United. The drunken hero is one of my damned.

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The Blind Side

The Blind Side (2009)

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PG-13 - 129 min - Biography, Drama, Sport - 20 November 2009
Big Blue Sky Rating : 7.6/10

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Director : John Lee Hancock
Writers : John Lee Hancock, Michael Lewis
Stars : Quinton Aaron, Sandra Bullock, Tim McGraw, Jae Head

Based on the true story of Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy who take in a homeless teenage African-American, Michael "Big Mike" Oher. Michael has no idea who his father is and his mother is a drug addict. Michael has had little formal education and few skills to help him learn. Leigh Anne soon takes charge however, as is her nature, ensuring that the young man has every opportunity to succeed. When he expresses an interest in football, she goes all out to help him, including giving the coach a few ideas on how best to use Michael's skills. They not only provide him with a loving home, but hire a tutor to help him improve his grades to the point where he would qualify for an NCAA Division I athletic scholarship. Michael Oher was the first-round pick of the Baltimore Ravens in the 2009 NFL draft.

Another inspirational sport film

I saw this last night at a screening and found it to be a very inspiring movie. I love sports movies as well as movies based on true stories, so this film hit multiple buttons for me personally, but reactions of others leaving the theater seemed equally positive.

As with any sports movie, you must have an underdog to cheer for, and Michael Oher is that underdog. Having been removed by CPS from his crack-addicted mother's home as a child and bounced from foster home to foster home, Oher has been staying on a friend's couch. He is reluctantly accepted to a private school when the football coach sees potential in him and pressures the school's admissions board to give him a chance.

Unfortunately, being an undereducated black youth in a predominantly white private school doesn't magically turn his life around, and in addition to struggling to understand his classes, he finds himself sleeping in an all night laundromat after the stay at the friend's house ends. While walking on a cold, rainy night , Oher is offered a ride and then a place to sleep for the night by the Leigh Anne Tuohy, whose children attend the same school Michael does. It's this single act of kindness that begins a chain of events that will change this underdog's life, eventually resulting in his being a top 2009 NFL draft pick and signing with the Baltimore Ravens.

The actors brought plenty of life to the characters they were playing. It was a pleasure to watch Tim McGraw as Sean Tuohy, making a somewhat minor character in the film memorable. Sandra Bullock's portrayal of Leigh Anne Tuohy was fascinating--I'd really love to meet Mrs. Tuohy in person. Jae Head as SJ became my favorite character in the movie, practically stealing the show as it were. Quinton Aaron's portrayal of Oher leans heavily to the strong, silent type, but there is a quiet grace and gentleness that comes through.

Obviously, nothing is quite as slick and clean as Hollywood plays it in movies like this, and there were issues and controversies surrounding the Tuohy family and the assistance they offered Michael Oher. Some of it is depicted in the movie, though not all, and there are many who will decry this film for that. It's a given that there is more to a story than what you see on the screen...condensing years into a two hour presentation requires some compromise...and it is meant to be entertainment after all.

I only had a couple criticisms. One, at 126 minutes, the movie was a little too long. I think 8-10 minutes of editing would have really tightened it up and eliminated a couple slower moments. Second, Sandra Bullock's accent seemed a little too forced at times. And finally, what happened to Steve Hamilton, the boy whose family Michael was staying with when he started attending Briarwood? Once introduced as his father pressures the coach for scholarships for Steve and Michael, he disappears from the movie. Minor issues that didn't keep this from being an extremely enjoyable movie, but did help keep it from being a perfect 10.

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Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are (2009)

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PG - 101 min - Adventure, Drama, Family, Fantasy - 16 October 2009
Big Blue Sky Rating : 6.8/10

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Director : Spike Jonze
Writers : Spike Jonze, Dave Eggers
Stars : Max Records, Catherine O'Hara, Forest Whitaker, Pepita Emmerichs

A young boy named Max has an active imagination, and he will throw fits if others don't go along with what he wants. Max - following an incident with Claire (his sister) and her friends, and following a tantrum which he throws as a result of his Mother paying more attention to her boyfriend than to him - runs away from home. Wearing his wolf costume at the time, Max not only runs away physically, but runs toward a world in his imagination. This world, an ocean away, is inhabited by large wild beasts, including one named Carol who is much like Max himself in temperament. Instead of eating Max like they normally would with creatures of his type, the wild things befriend Max after he proclaims himself a king who can magically solve all their problems.

Redefining the adaptation

Where the Wild Things Are, one of the most beloved children's books, comes to the big screen in one of the most highly anticipated films of the year. Spike Jonze, the man responsible for Being John Malcovich, Adaptation, and several Beastie Boys music videos including "Sabotage", brings the tale to life. I must admit, I have been anxiously awaiting this film for several months, something I don't like to do too often as it sets up for a potential major let down.

Well, that didn't happen this time.

We follow Max (Max Records), a boy who is lonely and misunderstood. His sister doesn't pay attention to him, his mother is busy with work and her boyfriend, and he has worries at school. All he wants is attention and to belong. One night, he finally breaks and runs away. He makes his way to the woods and to the waters edge. There he finds a small boat and set out on the open sea, leaving everything behind him.

He comes across an island and goes ashore. There he finds a group of monsters in turmoil. Max seizes his opportunity and confronts the group. He tells them that he is a great king and help them solve their problems.

I don't want to give too much of the story away because I feel like telling it would ruin some of the magic. This is one of the most visually pleasing films I have seen in a long time. Jonze filmed in Australia. We are given vivid landscapes of lush forests, arid deserts, and beautiful shorelines, culminating in an almost Lord of the Rings like experience. These spectacular settings would rarely be beaten in magnificence in another film, but here they come second to the unbelievable special effects used for the monsters.

There are seven monsters on the island. Carol, Ira, Judith, KW, Douglas, Alexander, and The Bull. They all have unique features and are of massive size. Jonze could have gone two ways here. He could have completely made them all CG or he could have gone Jim Henson and turned them into Muppets. Instead, he carved a third path and combined the other two options. Max is able to interact extremely well with the gigantic puppet/suits, but the faces are edited with computer graphics, giving them startlingly realistic features and expressions. Making these monsters any different way would have been disastrous.

Another key aspect of the monsters is giving them a voice. Jonze chose excellent voice actors with James Gandolfini, Forrest Whitaker, Catherine O'Hara, Lauren Ambrose, Paul Dano, and Chris Cooper. They each have their own personality that compliments their physical and emotional characteristics.

Aside from the monsters, I was very impressed with Max. He is asked to do a very demanding thing: be a kid. That sounds easy, but it is very easily messed up. I'm interested in finding out how much freedom Jonze gave Records in certain scenes that called for him to go "wild". I can imagine directing young actors is not the easiest thing to do, but sometimes you catch a break when you get a talented one.

Giving life to these characters is a spectacular screenplay by Jonze and Dave Eggers (who wrote Away We Go). Their writing speaks to both kids and adults, using language that is meaningful and easy to understand. The things Max goes through every child feels growing up: loneliness, fear, belonging, etc.

There is so much to love about this movie. It speaks to the heart. But before you head out with the whole family, heed this warning. Some parts of this film might be too intense for younger audience members. Certain scene involving the monsters might be a bit too overwhelming. Yes, these monsters are friendly, but they are monsters, meaning they are large, intimidating, and somewhat scary.

Where the Wild Things Are will satisfy, entertain, and open your eyes. Spike Jonze poured everything he had into this film and the wait was well worth it. I hope you will fall under its spell just as I did.

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Gentlemen Broncos

Gentlemen Broncos (2009)

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PG-13 - 90 min - Adventure, Comedy - 27 May 2010
Big Blue Sky Rating : 5.7/10

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Director : Jared Hess
Writers : Jared Hess, Jerusha Hess
Stars : Michael Angarano, Jemaine Clement, Mike White, John Baker

Benjamin, home-schooled by his eccentric mother, is a loner whose passion for writing leads him on an journey as his story first gets ripped off by the legendary fantasy novelist, Ronald Chevalier, and then is adapted into a disastrous movie by the small town's most prolific homespun filmmaker.

Authentically eccentric and touchingly funny: Hess does it again!

When I see a film like this receiving such an average rating on IMDb it really makes me wonder why certain people feel the need to rate a film that they must know is just not aimed at them. Just leave it alone and go rent some formulaic pseudo-quirky comedy like the Hangover or something. But for those of you who believe humor is something that needs constant re-inventing then look no further than Jared Hess' films. Gentlemen Broncos is quite simply one of the freshest, funniest, well acted (from a comedic standpoint), and sharply written comedies I've had the privilege of seeing.

The film tells a small but endearing tale which is playfully examined on a number of skilfully interwoven levels. Like Hess's earlier film, Napoleon Dynamite, Broncos is populated by an array of quirky characters, each with hidden depths. The setting is another small town in 'Nowheresville USA', and the context is the wonderfully brought to life world of trashy science fiction writing. Again, as he did in ND, Hess manages to create a world so utterly bizarre from a visual and aesthetic point of view but so familiar from an emotional point of view that the emotional tribulations of the characters become the dominant focus of the film. And this, of course, is the point. The emotions that the film both explores and manages to stir within the audience are the truest feature of the conceptual landscape. So as the film progresses, the realness of the characters increasingly stands out against the more surreal elements of the film and, with that, the audience becomes increasingly enamoured of each and every one of them.

The story itself centres on an insecure adolescent, Benjamin (Angarano), who writes science fiction novellas. Hess succeeds wonderfully in giving us yet another central character who we immediately root for and admire despite, and perhaps because of, his obvious lack of typical mainstream lead character traits. Angarano is, as usual, excellent in the lead role in that he manages to play a shy character with little to say while simultaneously holding the viewers' attention throughout. The supporting roles are all manned ably with Coolidge, White, and Clement scoring particularly well. However, as is the case with every film he stars in, Sam Rockwell steals the show from his very first scene to the very end of the closing credits. Choosing yet another quirky secondary character, Rockwell again shows that he's not just the most talented character actor of his generation but one of the most instinctively and originally funny as well. Being a good actor and being funny in a film are not necessarily mutually compatible skills but Rockwell does it with ease and as the fictional heroes of both Bronco and Brutus, he gives us two entirely different and insanely original comedy Sci-Fi characters that I will personally relish watching again and again.

As a backdrop to the action Hess uses the world of pulp science fiction novels and, as intimated above, it is with this multi-layered device that main thrust of the comedy is delivered. The fictional world of the "Yeast Lords" is so outrageously funny that I defy anyone to get through the four or five scenes starring Bronco or Brutus without cracking up at least once (for those who have the DVD, there's a particularly hilarious blooper where Rockwell can't bring himself to say the line "were there pimps?" without breaking into laughter at the sheer absurdity of his lines). All in all, the film sends up this peculiar little genre of "writing" while clearly maintaining a strong affection for the potential imaginative freedom it sometimes manages to exploit.

Gentlemen Broncos is the most original and authentically eccentric film I've seen, well since Napoleon dynamite. This latter aspect to Hess' films is a true virtue given the plethora of 'whacky-by-numbers' films that Hollywood has been inflicting on us over the past decade. At no time watching Broncos did I feel like I'd seen any of it before and the freshness combined with the innate razor-sharp wit of the writing and acting allowed me to laugh the most refreshing and honest laughs I had laughed in years. If you watched it and didn't like it but did like ND, please go back and watch it again. This is a rare gem of a film and if you ultimately change your mind and come to agree with us small band of Hess devotees then do your best to get that ridiculously inappropriate rating up.

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Book of Blood

Book of Blood (2009)

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R - 100 min - Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller - 8 May 2009
Big Blue Sky Rating : 5.2/10

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Director : John Harrison
Writers : John Harrison, Darin Silverman
Stars : Jonas Armstrong, Sophie Ward, Clive Russell, Paul Blair. A paranormal expert discovers a house that is at the intersection of so-called "highways" transporting souls in the afterlife." />

A paranormal expert discovers a house that is at the intersection of so-called "highways" transporting souls in the afterlife.

A tale worth hearing

The imagination of Clive Barker has always fascinated me. His greatest work is, indeed, the 6 Books of Blood. An unnerving and fascinating anthology. So going into this, I was confused as how they would adapt it. I expected it to be an anthology comprising of some of the more memorable stories, but what I got was quite different - and ultimately I was quite pleasantly surprised.

The movie itself is not based on The Books of Blood, but rather the eponymous "Book" itself - a man named Simon. It must have been a tricky process as this portion of the actual Books was short and only served as the introduction; never truly mentioned again. However there is enough creativity here to make the story interesting.

One of the strengths of this picture is that while it embraces cliché at time, it knows how to use classic spooks and suspenseful tones rather than blood and gore. There is some gruesome imagery - especially with a murder taking place at the beginning, but this is not a film where guts are spilled regularly. This is a clever and inventive ghost story, and like the ghosts in this film; it is a story that is begging to be heard.

The film follows Simon McNeal, a humble but troubled man with an interest in the supernatural. He agrees to take up an offer granted by his tutor, Mary Florescu, to investigate a home in which two very unnerving deaths have occurred that is flocking with supernatural activity.

The film explores an interesting take on the afterlife. There are "Intersections" that cross their world with ours, and the dead are trapped in these intersections... begging for their tales to be told. However - no one will Listen, and the story mostly follows Simon, Mary and her partner Reg as the dead begin to take interest in Simon and the revelations of their intents. It is well thought out, clever, and the ending is quite smart.

There are flaws. The acting is a mixed bag, and while the film can use cliché to its advantage (Actually making classical ghost effects somewhat creepy again) the use of it in some of the scare scenes don't work. It's also strange and even uncomfortable when sex scenes come in to play, as they always seem to play out at an inappropriate time; usually directly after the more disturbing events.

All in all... you should give Book of Blood a chance. It is one of the better films based on a Clive Barker piece, and it has the imagination of all the other stories that were told. It makes a great companion to the books themselves - and it saddens me that this is relatively obscure.

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Gentlemen Broncos

Gentlemen Broncos (2009)

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PG-13 - 90 min - Adventure, Comedy - 27 May 2010
Big Blue Sky Rating : 5.7/10

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Director : Jared Hess
Writers : Jared Hess, Jerusha Hess
Stars : Michael Angarano, Jemaine Clement, Mike White, John Baker

Benjamin, home-schooled by his eccentric mother, is a loner whose passion for writing leads him on an journey as his story first gets ripped off by the legendary fantasy novelist, Ronald Chevalier, and then is adapted into a disastrous movie by the small town's most prolific homespun filmmaker.

An Instant Classic That Is Much More Than The Sum Of Its Parts

I saw this movie last night at a sneak preview in Jared Hess' home city. It totally ruled. It was full of laugh-out-loud scenes, with comedy on every level, excellent performances, and a sneaky plot that Scorsese would have been proud of. Everyone in the audience seemed to love it, lingering to cite scenes to each other long after the film was over. Even the press seemed genuinely giddy to be there.

Everyone who follows comedy knows what a big hit Napoleon Dynamite was, and although Nacho Libre was extremely funny, it lacked some of the kitschy style that made Napoleon more than just a comedy. Gentlemen Broncos seems to be the calculated result of a wise decision to return to form. If Napoleon Dynamite has nerds, Gentlemen Broncos has Supernerds; if Napoleon Dynamite has touches of the 70's and 80's, Gentlemen Broncos has dropped you off and left you there.

Like the best Wes Anderson films, Hess has the ability to identify and isolate a lovably weird segment of our society and walk right on that line for the duration of his films. In this case, it's the soul-drying, bad sci-fi stories that I used to see when I was a kid but don't anymore. The lone, laser-gun-wielding hero standing on a world with three moons and a tight, lit-up grid pattern for ground; the farming space station that's been overrun by cyborg apes; the space worm; etc. The kind of bad stories that couldn't even merit a hardback release, let alone a movie– and now can't even be found new. Capturing that odd energy and riffing a clear story on top of it earns Hess bonus points right off the bat.

He also has a gift for making good actors great at being bad, on purpose. Mike White has never been even nearly as hilarious as he was in this film (watch out for snakes), Jennifer Coolidge was in top form (as usual), and Sam Rockwell got all the way on board with a career burning phoenix of comedy that covered the polar ends of the spectrum. And because Hess pays special attention to each character, Hector Jiminez and Halley Feiffer are given equal opportunity to steal the show, and turn hilarious performances.

Now let's start a new paragraph. Shame on whoever dissed this movie before I had a chance to get here– you shall fall into the pit which you dig, because you seem to have forgotten one important detail: Jemaine Clement is in this movie. You can't give anything with Jemaine Clement in it one freakin' star. It's against the laws of physics. And when people see that you've done that, they'll only question whether you really even saw this movie at all. One of the funniest people alive, Jemaine Clement (of Flight of the Conchords) reproves his very real character-acting abilities, swanning over the film in full form as a tightly wound, bad-jeans-wearing, writer-bearded egomaniac who is so cheesy that you can smell the leather conditioner coming out of the screen. He was the obvious heir to the throne, for the whole show, and turns in what I think is his best performance so far, by far- which is really far. He's a full-blown comedic genius, and still seems to have been able to go even further under the direction of Jared Hess.

But the real satisfaction ends up coming from Hess knowing to place Michael Angarano right up front to show everyone what he can do. Clement is no surprise, when his greatness comes through- that's just normal. But to watch Angarano hang ten on his own terms, through his own scenes, was magnificent.

I caught Michael Angarano in several films, starting with Seabiscuit. But it was in the family favorite "Sky High" that I noticed how well he was starting to do subtle comedy as a farce's underdog, a'la Ben Stiller. Apparently Hess noticed him long before that, and was able to capitalize on Angarano's rising talent, to have it perfectly coincide with Gentlemen Broncos. He builds up the pain in Angarano's character so smoothly and steadily, that when he finally explodes it's about as pressured as Travis the Taxi Driver. Except replace the mohawk with a woman's clownsuit dress and the gun with a bean pillow in the shape of a blonde, mustached tranny. And throughout the wind-up, Michael Angarano plays everything to a tee, walking brow-first above bloodshot eyes, seeming to be struggling to keep down his own intestines at the sight of the limitless tragedies that are happening to him throughout the bulk of the film. He's so likable and well-paced that you just can't believe it either, and can't imagine anything getting any better for him- until he goes off in a blaze of glory.

Now I realize that all of these descriptors may sound like Hess may have sacrificed the inspired randomness of Napoleon Dynamite in order to make a more structured film. But let me console you in saying that, somehow, surrounding this Coen-worthy plot is so much perfect silliness that most people won't even see all of the true plot steps until they come together for a perfect showdown and a winning finale. In fact, the movie is so wild that some will mistake it for trying relying on sophomoric humor, which it sells fresh and hot throughout (when the majority is more intelligent situational and quotable line humor, with which Hess is a born natural). But analyze it honestly, and you'll see that the emotion-based story is top rate in it's rawness and simplicity, like all the best films.

In short, Gentlemen Broncos is just like it's name- a sophisticated, well-dressed animal that kicks naysayers repeatedly in several places. I wish I had the connections to be able to see it again right now. Thank you comedy Gods, for giving us Jared Hess.

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