By R. Kurt Osenlund, The Good Life film critic

Labels: Movies

Dishing on the latest blend of alternative flicks being tossed around in limited release

By R. Kurt Osenlund
Film critic and correspondent

Ramin Bahrani, that 34-year-old minimalist who won the hearts of critics with his dressed-down features "Man Push Cart" (2005) and "Chop Shop" (2007), proves himself a consistently skillful American auteur with "Goodbye Solo," a surprisingly unique friendship tale that exudes a great deal of power without the slightest hint of force.
It's rather astonishing that Souleymane Sy Savane, the actor from Africa's Ivory Coast who plays the sanguine Winston-Salem, N.C. cabbie Solo, has no previous film credits. In a performance of equal parts subtlety and vitality, Savane fleshes out a cheer-worthy modern protagonist who seems more heroic amidst his daily tasks than many Superheroes do whilst saving the world. Solo is the very antithesis of William, the crotchety white fare who pays his driver $1,000 to take him to a windy mountaintop for undisclosed reasons. William is portrayed without pretense by Red West, a weather-worn veteran with plenty of film credits (as well as a former gig as Elvis's bodyguard). Though the film's trailers may imply otherwise, don't think for a moment that Bahrani would condescend to go the white-man-in-distress-consults-the-magical-Negro-route, for "Goodbye Solo" soars beyond petty genre conventions.
Bahrani, whose fondness for smart and simplistic American character studies makes him a gritty kindred spirit to actor-turned-filmmaker Thomas McCarthy ("The Station Agent," "The Visitor"), worked with his two leads for months, allowing both men to understand both characters and cultivate their rapport. We, the audience, reap the benefits of this prep process -- Solo and William don't have a single false exchange.
The ending of "Goodbye Solo" approaches with a palpable potency, like a wave waiting to crash. Though largely unspoken, the outcome is an inevitable and predictable one; however, Bahrani is too good a storyteller to allow that to subtract from the drama. There's still a graceful mystery hanging in the air when the movie reaches its final moments, wherein we reflect on the journey we've just seen -- one of two men at opposite ends of the human experience.
4.5 stars (out of 5).

Labels: Movies

By R. Kurt Osenlund, film critic and correspondent

AMY ADAMS

The redhead has long been a staple of Hollywood's lineage of fine actresses. Ann Margaret comes to mind. So do Lucille Ball and Julianne Moore. Recently, crimson-locked Aussie and audience favorite Isla Fisher nailed her first starring role in "Confessions of a Shopaholic," further cementing the public's affinity for these uncommonly pigmented leading ladies. But the most show-stopping redhead working in movies today has got to be Amy Adams who, fresh from her second Oscar nomination, continues to see her star rise.


True to her flame-tinted coif, Adams blazed onto the scene in 2005 when, after honing her craft in fluff like "Drop Dead Gorgeous" and "Cruel Intentions 2," she earned a Supporting Actress Academy Award nomination for her infectiously endearing work in the quirky indie "Junebug." She followed that with the lead in 2007's Disney princess homage, "Enchanted," which sealed her already tight approval from both critics and audiences.


Last year, Adams got the call from Oscar again for playing the meek Sister James in John Patrick Shanley's "Doubt," a role that was a perfect fit for the actress' inherent innocence. Adams didn't win the trophy, but that star keeps ascending. This month, she stars in "Sunshine Cleaning," a dramedy from the producers of "Little Miss Sunshine" -- is there a theme emerging? -- that co-stars Emily Blunt ("The Devil Wears Prada") and Academy Award-winner Alan Arkin ("LMS"). The film is about two women (Adams and Blunt) who, strapped for cash, start their own crime scene-clean-up business. Only time will tell how "Cleaning" fares at the box office but, with Adams on board, odds are ticket sales will be red-hot.

Labels: Movies