Reviews: Moon.

Sometimes you watch a movie and you're on the fence as to whether it was truly great or greatly lacking. You weigh the pros and cons and then you either keep thinking about it, or end up forgetting. If the film in question stays with you, if its ominous feeling continues to envelope you hours and days afterward, then know that the film is good. Moon is one of those films. I was a little weary at first, i'll admit. I saw the trailers and was scared that Duncan Jones was going to attempt to re-make 2001: A Space Odyssey for a younger generation - a generation that seems to enjoy reality television over reality itself and whose attention spans are so short (and egotism is so large) they need to twitter before, during, and after going to the bathroom. And I was almost sure it would be just that within the first minute, upon seeing the big, 4-letter title on the screen. Compare title shots:

(I realize that the title short for Moon isn't exactly the same, but you have to admit there are some similarities.)

It took maybe 5 more minutes of watching this film, however, that I came to realize it was nothing at all like Kubrick's Odyssey. This was a film all its' own. Sam Rockwell stars as Sam Bell, an average guy who happens to work at a space station on the moon, collecting a new kind of fuel for the Earth. He's been there for 3 years, all alone, with only a computer named Gerty (voiced by Kevin Spacey) to keep him company (which did remind me a little of HAL at some points, until you realize that he isn't anything like HAL either.) Sam is doing everything he can to stay sane as he only has 2 weeks left on the moon, but the isolation begins to get to him. He gives proper names to all the computers and monitors in the station (all bearing biblical names like Mark and Luke and Judas) and even speaks to his plants, to whom he's even given some kind of life story to.

That's honestly as far as I think any reviewer can go without giving away too much (and thankfully the people who created the trailer were wise enough to keep most of the story out of the trailer as well.) From there, Sam begins to lose it. He sees things and hears things that aren't there (or are they?) and pretty soon it's obvious that Sam is spiraling down mentally and emotionally. Rockwell had an extremely difficult and complex character to play, having to teeter between hopelessness and determination, being completely alone and then keeping himself company, being the rock upon which he has to stand. The film works on many levels. For one, it addresses to what lengths we're willing to go for science, or perhaps more succinctly to what lengths we're willing to go for our own selfishness. It explores the desperation that comes along with extreme isolation, not only in a physical way but in an emotional way as well. It also brings about that need to hold on to our humanity, to feel as Sam puts it to Gerty at one point, that we "can't be programmed," regardless of the circumstances.

The film would not work so well if it weren't for Clint Mansell, though. The composer/musician is truly one of the great kings of mood-setting. He's penned the score for other phenomenal films such as Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain, and The Wrestler. He truly outdoes himself with Moon, though. There's something terribly hypnotic, hopeful, and intense about the music that plays throughout the film, chiming in at all the right moments with just the right amount of ferocity. Mansell's score is what ties the whole mood of the film together, truly.

For director Duncan Jones, there is no way of escaping the fact that he is David Bowies' son, and that it will always raise questions as to how influenced he's been by his father. I've read a few reviews now mentioning the possibly allusions to Bowie's song Space Oddity. I think i'll have to jump on the bandwagon and say that at the very least I can see a little of Major Tom in Sam Bell. But honestly, the film has so many more dimensions, so many more plot twists that I think Jones has created something all his own. Jones has created a character that could only exist in our time, one that is on the cusp of the present and the future, who embodies what we might become someday.

Thank you, Duncan Jones, for giving us an unforgettable science fiction film that might one day be science itself. Thank you, Sam Rockwell, for giving this performance your all. It really showed. It's a film that makes you want to keep believing, right up to the very end.

F** Cunt! A Review of In The Loop

Any trailer that mentions Nazi Julie Andrews and the Baby from Eraserhead must guarantee a fantastic film, or one would hope anyway, right? Luckily, it was definitely true about In The Loop - the latest creation of writer/director Armando Iannucci, whose other works include episodes of "Time Trumpet", "I'm Alan Partridge", and other shows i've never heard of. However, I'm sure many of us will remember Mr. Iannucci from now on thanks to this comedy gem. The film starts off with British Secretary of State for International Development Simon Foster (Tom Hollander) accidentally stating on television that he feels a war might be "unforeseeable," which quickly escalates in to an international broo-ha-ha with the US and UK governments being the main players.

Toby Wright (Chris Addison) is Foster's assistant who has only just begun working for him but who quickly gets entangled in Foster's ineptitude to the point that he, too, begins to create his own series of political screw-ups. Simon and Toby are shadowed, however, by the (fucking) phenomenal Malcom Tucker (played impeccably by Peter Capaldi.) On the US side, we have Karen Clark (Mimi Kennedy, in a role that could be seen as her antithesis to that of her character as Dharma's mom on Dharma and Greg), her assistant Liza Weld (played by My Girl's Vada Sultenfuss herself - Anna Chlumsky), Lt. General Flinstone- er.. I mean Miller (Tony Soprano himself - James Gandolfini), and the grenade-wielding Linton Barwick (David Rasche.) Each character is completely cut-throat in their own way, making the movie feel almost like a comedy roast, with each person constantly digging the verbal knife in to each other's backs at almost every scene.

In The Loop is a kamikaze of one-liners, bent on destroying the inflated egos of everyone on screen. Iannucci must have been collecting these for ages, making hilarious pop-culture references (from the White Stripes to Harry Potter to the Crying Game) left and right. Some of the most entertaining scenes include Washington D.C. interns letting loose at a death metal concert, and one character claiming that his infidelity was a round-about attempt to prevent a war from occurring. The spin doctoring, the lying, the cheating, the leaking, the fax-machine destroying, the babies working in the White House, and all those awkward moments every time Simon speaks in public make this film the best intelligent comedy of the year so far. Seriously, go watch it, and remember:

Review: So Delicious Coconut Milk Ice Cream Bars - Banana Split Flavor!

Alright... I've always been a big fan of the ice cream sandwich. It was one of the few regular items i'd always get from the ice cream truck as a child (well, besides the Mickey Mouse and Pink Panther bars!) Not long ago, I tried out the Tofutti ice cream sandwiches which were pretty good, but full of hydrogenated evils. Then yesterday while I was at my local Publix, I decided I wanted to try coconut milk ice cream. Turtle Foods makes some pretty fantastic coconut milk yogurt and I figured that the ice cream had to be pretty good as well. My Publix carries 4 different pints of coconut milk ice cream (vanilla bean, chocolate, mint chocolate, and cookie dough.) I almost grabbed the cookie dough when my eyes caught sight of 2 boxes of coconut milk ice cream sandwiches! There was a box of coconut almond sandwiches which looked rather appealing, and another of the banana split flavored sandwiches. Banana whaaa?! It goes without saying that my favorite ice cream indulgence is the banana split. It reminds me of being a little girl and taking a trip to the local ice cream shoppe with my dad. He was a big banana split fan as well. And finding a banana split in ice cream sandwich form was just too much! I quickly snatched the $4.99 box up and brought it home with me.

Although i've never done the ice cream for breakfast thing, I figure hell, it's summer vacation. Might as well indulge! So I grabbed the 100 calorie package and opened it up and therein lay the most scrumptious of vegan ice cream sandwiches. Sweetened with agave nectar, this cruelty-free, low-fat gem looked perfect. It's got a little chocolate ice cream, a little strawberry, and some banana flavored ice cream in the center. I took a bite and wowowowow! This stuff is so effin good! Seriously. One, it doesn't really have a heavy coconut flavor like I thought it might. Just tastes like ice cream. Like GOOD ice cream. You can tell the difference in the ice cream flavors (although I was hoping for the banana to be a little stronger, but nonetheless) and the chocolate "bread" of the sandwich is comparable to every good ice cream sandwich. It's soft and tasty and sticks a little to your fingers if you hold it for too long.

Dee-lish! 4 stars, Turtle Mountain, for your amazing frozen creation!