The Weekly Movie Watch Volume 57

This week I watched The Theory of Everything, A Place in the Sun, Nashville.

I watch movies every week and then write down my thoughts. Read my previous reviews!
My rating is simple, Watch It, It Depends, Skip it.

The Theory of Everything - The Stephen Hawking story more romance than biopic.

The Theory of Everything (2014)
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Written by: Anthony McCarten (screenplay, Jane Hawking (book)
Directed by: James Marsh
Starring: Eddie Redmayne, Felicity Jones, Tom Prior
Rated: PG-13

Plot: 
In a story that's as much about Stephen Hawking, as it is his wife Jane, Eddie Redmayne and Felecity Jones play Stephen and Jane.

Review:
It's a good film, but it never became great. I was hoping for inspiration, but it only ever hints at the struggles Stephen Hawking and his wife faced. The movie ends up like a summary of major plot points. The movie relied to heavily on being a biopic on Stephen Hawking. If this wasn't a Hawking film, it wouldn't have done as well.
The movie has a number of great scenes, but the lighting was strange. Many scenes the lighting bloom is distracting. It's a strange decision, and I'm not talking about the home video type shots either.
The production values are fantastic. The movie looks the part, as does Eddie Redmayne who did a superb job. It's a very physical part and he looks like Hawking in mannerism and appearance. The film did a great job of telegraphing Hawking's ALS diagnosis. Everyone knew it was coming and I liked the subtlety. Though it was obvious he had problems, why did he wait so long to confront them? The movie should have delved into that.
I like that the movie is as much about Jane Hawking as it is Stephen. The movie did a good job of connecting viewers to both of them. Both of them have an incredibly difficult plight. It's not difficult to see why they drifted apart, and it hinted that both found lover elsewhere. I found it strange the required text at the end of any good biopic noted Jane's second marriage, but didn't note Stephen's to his nurse.

Verdict:
It's a very good biopic on an extraordinary scientist that is well worth watching, and not just for the history. It's very much a wikipedia page summary, and I wanted it to go deeper. It fails at being inspirational because it doesn't explore what Hawking went through to succeed. It lacks that triumph moment. We never see how he works, which I really wanted to know what a physicist does during the day.
It depends.

A Moment in the Sun - Love triangles never end well.

A Place in the Sun (1951)
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Written by: Theodore Dreiser (novel "An American Tragedy"), Patrick Kearney (play adapted from novel), Michael Wilson and Harry Brown (screenplay)
Directed by: George Stevens
Starring:Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, Shelley Winters
Rated: --

Plot: 
George Eastman played by Montgomery Clift gets a job with his well-to-do uncle, and then he juggles two girlfriends, one a factory worker played by Shelly Winters and the other a socialite played by Elizabeth Taylor.

Review:
George has big aspirations, finds an opportunity, and works hard. It's the American dream, but at the same time he breaches the rule of not fraternizing with coworkers and begins dating a coworker. We like him less when he rises up the social ranks and falls for a socialite, his pregnant girlfriend now posing a problem.
Older movies feel like stage productions instead of something visceral. Despite the '50s staples of intrusive music and overacting, the setup for this movie is great. At the end we're left with the question of did he or didn't he. He was intent on murder and relented, but did he make the effort to save his girlfriend or let her drown? We don't see that moment. We see the boat capsize and the next scene is George, soaking wet, climbing onto the shore alone.
With his original intent and all of the corroborating evidence, the case is open and shut, but did George kill his girlfriend?

Verdict:
Few movies leave you asking questions, unless it's about plot holes. This is a smart, well-written movie. We don't know what happened, and are left wondering, "Did he do it?" Whether he did or not, is the punishment just?
It depends.

Nashville - Politics, music, and satire.

Nashville (1975)
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Written by: Joan Tewksbury
Directed by: Robert Altman
Starring: Keith Carradine, Karen Black, Ronee Blakley
Rated: R

Plot: 
A bevy of characters including aspiring and established musicians converge at a political rally in Nashville


Review:
The fact this movie isn't a mess is a testament to the quality. Large ensemble movies are easy to mess up. While there are a lot of characters, they are unique and well developed. It's a satirical look at the music industry in Nashville, framed by a presidential campaign. We never see the candidate, only hearing his ideology spouted from the speakers of a van.

Verdict:
Like a good satire, the events depicted are completely ridiculous, but not wholly unbelievable. The movie has an underlying humor throughout. It's well written and does a great job of juggling the characters.
It depends.