Anna Karenina (2012) - Movie Review

When I try spelling Anna Karenina, I always want to add another 'na' to it.  I have the same problem when I spell bananana.

I have to admit that I've never read the novel by Tolstoy (some dead guy...kidding), or have much familiarity with the story. Sure, I've heard of it, but who hasn't?  Looking at the history, you could call Anna Karenina the Halley's Comet of movies, as it seems to get remade every 10 to 13 years.  Yes, I know Halley's Comet doesn't come that often, but I couldn't think of another occurrence in nature that happened with the same frequency.  Maybe a day will come where people will mark the ages by which version of Anna Karenina they identify with.

Even if you've never seen any of the previous adaptations of Anna Karenina the basic story is one that should feel familiar.  Anna (Keira Knightley) is married to a wealthy politician Alexei Karenin (Jude Law).  He's a little cold, but not abusive, and Anna seems to love their son more than she loves him.  While travelling to help a friend, Anna meets Count Vronsky (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), and it's love at first sight.  They have a passionate affair, but Alexei is no dummy and learns of it.  He wants a divorce, but Anna knows the disgrace this will cause her and that she won't be able to see her son any more.  Everyone becomes aware of her behavior and affair, which makes her an outcast.

After watching Joe Wright's adaptation of Anna Karenina, I have to wonder how faithful it is to the book.  I say this because I'm never given any reason to like the title character.  It didn't seem like her affair with Vronsky was triggered by anything more than making goo-goo eyes at each other at a dance party, which I have to admit the party was the highlight of the film.  Vronsky was even expected to propose to another woman, but one look at Anna and those plans are out the window.  He's this creepy looking guy with a bad mustache, and I just didn't get any chemistry that made me understand why they fell in love so fast.  Plus, Anna came off to me as selfish for wanting to continue her affair, but refusing to get a divorce because of what it would cost her.  I'm not sure if something got lost in the adaptation, or maybe it's that I don't think this kind of material holds up anymore.  Love as first sight seems to be something that you only see in old stories, and getting a divorce really isn't as big of a deal as it used to be.  I mean, when someone gets a divorce, you don't see everyone around her shunning her or ignoring her.  Adultery still isn't cool though.  How's that for taking a stand?

I just didn't connect with anything, and as the movie went on I found it boring.  There were many subplots and characters I cared nothing about, maybe with the exception of Levin (Domhnall Gleeson) and Kitty (Alicia Vikander).  The problem is that they are never the focus of the story, so when the the film comes back to them, it's too infrequent for me to have become that invested in it. Another thing that took me out of the movie was that they open it by telling you that this takes place in Russia, but everyone spoke with a English accent.

It's not all bad though.  It's a well-acted film.  I've always liked Keira Knightley, and I think it's funny how she's become the go-to girl for costume drama's.  She gives a good performance, and I actually think she's an underrated actress, but roles like this don't seem to be much of a stretch for her anymore.  I'd like to see her step out of her comfort zone a little more.  The performance I got the most out of was Jude Law's.  I get the feeling that his character's cold demeanor was meant to make him unlikable, but I could only sympathize with him.  I found him to be very reasonable considering the circumstances.  As much as I liked Aaron Taylor-Johnson in Kick-Ass, I think he might have been miscast here.  He seemed too young to be paired up with Knightley, and maybe a more mature presence might have helped me buy into their romance.  Plus, that mustache bugged the hell out of me, but I know that's not really his fault.

As you'd expect with most period pieces, it's visually striking and the costume design is very detailed.  Many scenes are set on an actual stage, and the sets are built around them as the scene progresses and even transitions to other locations.  You'll see walls and objects move in and out seamlessly.  It was a very interesting way to shoot the film, but at times I found it distracting, especially when you'd see pulleys and ropes as part of the scene.  The set design was great though, and I can't imagine the amount of work that went into setting up shots done in the film.  I can see why they didn't do the whole movie in this style, and I think it would have detracted from it if they had.  In fact, perhaps it was Wright's focus on the visuals that made it so hard for me to connect with any of the characters.

Anna Karenina is a beautiful costume drama, and features some strong performances by the cast, but I came away from this with a cold feeling.  I didn't care about any of the characters, and couldn't connect with it.  I think it's worth watching if you like this type of film, but it's something best left for rental.

2.5 (out of 5) Death Stars

Brave (2012) - Movie Review

Listen to your Mom!  Sure, she might nag you to keep your elbows off the table and pick up after yourself, but she usually knows best.

Brave is the story or Merida (Kelly Macdonald), a young, fiery Scottish girl that just wants to control her own fate.  She's a bit of tomboy, pursuing things like archery, hunting and exploring the wilderness.  She butts heads with her mother (Emma Thompson) who wants her to be more lady-like, where her father (Billy Connolly) encourages her behavior.

The trouble for Merida starts the day when she must choose a husband between the eldest born sons of three neighboring clans.  The problem is that these guys are nothing to get excited about.  Even though this is tradition and will prevent the clans from fighting, Merida wants none of it and flees.  While in the woods, she happens upon a Witch that promises a spell that will change her Mother's mind and allow Merida to choose her own fate.  As always, this has unexpected consequences and now it's up to her to fix things before it's too late.

As always, Pixar films are a visual treat.  The animation was great and the movie was gorgeous.  Merida's hair is practically a character on it's own.  I didn't get a chance to see this in 3D, so I can't comment on that, but I really don't think it's necessary.  The visuals didn't need the 3D gimmick and I didn't see a lot in the way of things being thrown at you where 3D would have enhanced the experience.

The voice talent was top notch!  Kelly Macdonald as Merida was perfect.  I always enjoy Billy Connolly and Emma Thompson and they are both great as well.  You have other strong actors like Robbie Coltrane, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson and Pixar-regular John Ratzenberger lending their voices to the supporting characters.  One thing that I've always liked about the voice acting in Pixar films is that it's never really distracting.  Even if you recognize the voice, you don't spend the rest of the movie trying to figure out who the voice belongs to.

The only real weakness of the film was the writing.  I felt the characters, particularly their motivations at the beginning of the film, were a little underwritten and needed a little more explanation.  It also lacked the same wit we've come to expect from Pixar films.  I was nervous from the trailers that much of the humor was going to be too childish, but it ended up being more sight gags and slapstick oriented.  While it was amusing, I felt it was very easy and safe. Merida's younger brothers should have been brought in more to provide a jolt of humor. I'm not surprised to see there were four writers (Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Brenda Chapman) and with the exception of Irene Mecchi, all shared directing duties as well.  It can work, but I think it hurts a film when you don't have a unified voice in the writing in directing.  It's not that Brave was a mess, it just could have been a bit stronger.  People have such high expectations for Pixar films.

Brave does have all the heart you'd expect though.  Pixar has alwasy excelled at taking a simple concept or story, but adding depth to it.  This time you get a story about an independent young woman growing up, while learning to compromise and bond with her mother.  It's a nice message, and sure, we've seen it before. Maybe I'm a big softie for this kind of story, but Brave had my wiping my eyes a few times.  I have two weaknesses: Scottish music, and stories based around the relationship of a parent and child.  Combine both and you have a recipe for making this grown man cry.

People really seem to be down on Pixar lately for not knocking it out of the park with their recent movies.  While Brave isn't a homerun, a double or triple that drives in a few runs isn't a bad thing either.  Sure, the appeal to this one skews a bit younger than with previous films, but overall, Brave is a great family movie that most everyone can enjoy.  It has gorgeous visuals and animation, great voice acting, plenty of humor and heart and a good message that we can all identify with.  This is a good matinee.

4 out of 5 Death Stars