Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Cars

I saw this film on May 31st, 2006 in Indianapolis. I am one of the judges for the Heartland Film Festival’s Truly Moving Picture Award. A Truly Moving Picture “…explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life.” Heartland gave that award to this film.

The most famous streak in sports is probably Joe DiMaggio’s 56 game hitting streak. The most famous hit streak in film entertainment is probably Pixar’s feature film animation streak. With “Cars”, it’s seven in row for outstanding storytelling that is well executed and is (or will be) rewarded with blockbuster box office grosses. “Toy Story”, “Toy Story 2”, “Monsters, Inc.”, “Finding Nemo”, “The Incredibles”, and “A Bug’s Life” are the other six gems.

The story is about Lightning McQueen a rookie NASCAR-type racer. Of course, he is a car and not a human; or, he is a human in the form of the car. Take your pick. Either way, he is not an attractive persona. He is selfish, unappreciative, greedy, two-faced and has no real friends. But, he is a great driver and is tied for The Piston (read Winston) Cup annual championship with two other drivers. On the way to the runoff race in California, he accidentally gets off in a sleepy and forgotten town on Route 66 named Radiator Springs.

In this hillbilly hell of a town, he is punished for speeding and tearing up the road by the sheriff. As he serves his sentence with community work, he discovers the town is inhabited by rejects and misfits, who all have hearts of gold. Can they change Lightning and make him over to have positive traits like honesty, integrity, respect, honor, sacrifice, humility, and compassion? That’s the drama that unfolds. Lightning is a hard case, and the outcome is always in doubt.

The cars/people are incredible. Shortly into the movie you forget that the people are cars or the cars are people, you suspend disbelief, and you just begin to watch an engaging story about real people. The windshields are their eyes, and the grilles are their mouths, and they display emotions as well as any human actor. The story is serious and light-hearted at the same time. The puns are too numerous to catch. And this is a must-see-twice-to-get-it-all movie.

FYI – There is a Truly Moving Pictures web site where there is a listing of past Truly Moving Picture Award winners that are now either at the theater or available on video.

Friday, May 26, 2006

The Lake House

I saw this film on May 26th, 2006 in Indianapolis. I am one of the judges for the Heartland Film Festival’s Truly Moving Picture Award. A Truly Moving Picture “…explores the human journey by artistically expressing hope and respect for the positive values of life.” Heartland gave that award to this film.

An attractive, educated, professionally fulfilled Doctor (Sandra Bullock) “meets” an attractive, educated, sensitive architect (Keanu Reeves) via letters and a past common residency of a particular lake house. What could be the problem? The problem is that they are currently living two years apart and then again at the exact same time in this romantic, heart-wrenching, dramatic fairy tale.

The Doctor leaves the lake house in rural Illinois in 2006 in order to advance her career and find happiness in Chicago. She leaves a note to an unknown-to-her new tenant, the architect, to forward her mail. They correspond to each other and slowly discover that he is actually living in the house 2 years earlier in 2004. And … they share the same dog. But somehow the viewer can suspend disbelief and get into the story because the two characters are believable and intelligent and are initially just as skeptical of the time riddle as the viewer.

Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock re-unite for the first time since “Speed.” The genre of “The Lake House” is completely different, but the actors are just as complementary and likeable in this fantasy tale. They both display a deep, patient, and profound love for each other. And they do so with grace and charm and a chemistry that can’t be readily explained.

Much of this film plays like a mystery with mothers and fathers, siblings, and boy and girl friends weaving in and out of the story in the present time of 2004 and the present time of 2006. But through it all, the Doctor and the architect ultimately never lose hope that they can solve this time puzzle and can actually be together at the same moment in time.

FYI – There is a Truly Moving Pictures web site where there is a listing of past Truly Moving Picture Award winners that are now either at the theater or available on video.