Hot off the Presses!

I'll just go ahead and group these two movies. After all, the closing credits of State of Play shows the making of newspapers that is continued in the opening credits of The Soloist. They had it coming!

A few thoughts on each. I found both to be excellent examples of the power that newspapers can yield at one time or another. This is especially relevant since this very same business is being threatened at the moment. This threat seems to be alluded to by Russell Crowe when he initially dismisses Rachel McAdams' blogger (by the way, the name Della Frye? the future name of my first born) as nothing more than a sign of the apocalypse. I like my newspaper men rugged and playing against the rules. There's simply nothing better!

State of Play is driven by an excellent conspiracy theory. Coming from a passionate fan of 24, this film hit right up my alley. Crowe is fantastic and McAdams just keeps giving me more reasons to fall in love with her. I actually thought Helen Mirren was underutilized while Ben Affleck either didn't have the talent for the material or wasn't given good material for his talent. I won't give an opinion on that but simply reitorate my love for him. State of Play manages to be both plot driven and character driven and offers a memorable turn by an almost unrecognizable Jason Bateman. Simply put: a taunt thriller.

Grade: B

2009 Marlon Welles Awards Nominee:

Best Actor: Russell Crowe's ruggedness
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Scene Stealer: Jason Bateman's exasperated, hilarious club promoter
Best "Best Moment of the Film": The entire sequence in the garage is intense!

The Soloist on the other hand is a much more complex notion. I liked many parts of it while being put off by many parts of it. I think the film works best as a fight between focus and neglect. Much of the film seems to be very intentionally roughly cut. Many scenes are cut at an unexpected point. If this is done intentionally, this is excellently juxtaposed with sequences of complete focus and centeredness. These are the moments where Jaime Foxx is completely centered on the music. I like the notion of letting the audience feel the schizophrenia of Foxx's character by sometimes not explaining what they are seeing. However, the film often becomes a message about homelessness which I felt was incessant. The movie works solely as a character driven exposition of emotion.

Grade: B-

2009 Marlon Welles Awards Nominee:

Best Actor: RDJ's alcoholic reporter. Another fine turn for this come backer.
Best Use of a Song: Beethoven's 9th Symphony
Best Use of a Song in the Trailer: Prelude from Bach's Cello Suite No. 1