Thursday, June 26, 2014

MOVIE WEEKEND: IN A WORLD & ENOUGH SAID

Gentle Readers . .  and Maxwell,

I want to spend my time catching up with your blogs after the Great Blog Roll Debacle, so this MOVIE WEEKEND is a quickie about two films I didn't like all that much. They aren't bad enough for me to warn you away from them. You might like them, or you might read my review and decide not to waste your time on them.

The first is In A World (2013, Rated R, Available On DVD).


Written, directed, and starring Lake Bell as Carol Solomon, In A World appeared to be a comedy, based on the trailer. Maybe it is a comedy and I just don't get it.

Carol Solomon wants to do voice-overs for movie trailers. She can imitate all sorts of accents and do the kind of smooth voice needed for a movie trailer beginning with a dramatic rendering of "in a world." Her father is one of the most successful voice-over guys around, and even he tells Carol that voice-overs are done by men. It isn't a job for women. Carol sets out to prove him wrong.

The movie has a couple of poignant moments, but that's about it. I didn't laugh. I don't think I smiled. The one point about this movie that stands out to me is that Carol tries to teach some women not to speak in babyish voices and not to end a declaratory statement as if it's a question. A lot of women do that. I think it's a habit borne of insecurity. I used to do it, but Hi! My name is Janie and I've been in voice recovery for a long time.

In A World earns The Janie Junebug Seal of Don't Bother.

The second movie, Enough Said, is a little better (2013, Rated PG-13, Available on DVD). I wanted to see this one because James Gandolfini is in it and I'm still kinda sad that he died. He was Tony Soprano.


In Enough Said, James Gandolfini plays Albert, who meets Eva (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) at a party. Albert asks Eva out on a date, and they hit it off. Eva, who is a masseuse, also meets a new client, Marianne (Catherine Keener), at the party. Eva massages Marianne, and they become friends. Marianne is a successful poet. Eva thinks Marianne is really smart. Marianne complains a lot about her ex-husband, who turns out to be Albert.

Eva allows Marianne's comments to poison her relationship with Albert, who has no idea that his new girlfriend hangs out with his ex-wife. Soon, Eva picks on Albert for the very habits Marianne complains about, instead of appreciating her initial happiness with him.

I enjoy Albert and Eva as a couple. They have a dry, deadpan witty repartee:

Eva: Oh, the Container Store?
Albert: Yes, yes, the Container Store. The store that sells crap so you can put your crap in so you can go out and buy some more crap.
Eva: I love that store. I love crap.

I can't tell you what happens because I'd ruin the movie for you. You might want to look at James Gandolfini and feel sad, too. I've liked Julia Louis-Dreyfus for many years, but as Eva, she's kind of weird and prone to doing stupid stuff. The character is not very likable. Eva also describes herself as middle-aged and flabby. If Julia Louis-Dreyfus is supposed to be middle-aged and flabby, that what the hell am I?

Enough Said earns The Janie Junebug Kinda Sorta Seal of Approval.

You can find better movies to watch than these two.

Happy Viewing!


Infinities of love,

Janie Junebug

Eva: I'm tired of being funny.
Albert: Me too.
Janie Junebug: Same here.

15 comments:

  1. The Great Blog Roll Debacle of 2014 caused me to become acquainted with Feedly (not an advertisement). Sorry to hear that Gandolfini's last movie is anything less than amazing. I finally have a movie recommendation for you. I watched Girl Most Likely and loved it. I don't know how to sell you on it. It's a comedy with Kristen Wiig about a writer who moves back home, and wouldn't you know it, her family is whacky. It sounds trite, but it really is funny and it made me like Matt Dillon.

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    1. Girl Most Likely is in my Netflix Screaming list. It will probably get watched sooner rather than later now that it has The Pickleope Seal of Approval. I've liked Matt Dillon for a while. He was good in Crash, and I liked My Bodyguard, made when he was teenager. I read on IMDb that Enough Said is Gandolfini's next to last movie. We have one more Gandolfini coming to us. As long as he doesn't hit me with a bat, it will be fine.

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  2. Ah, the Great Blog Roll Debacle! I knew something was wrong and I was so frustrated. I didn't even know how to define it -- blog roll. Anyway, so glad it's fixed! And glad you defined it for me.

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    1. Please come to me with all your questions, such as What should I make for dinner tonight? (Reservations) and Does my butt look big in this skirt? (Of course not) and What's the name for the thingy in the sidebar? (The thingy in the sidebar)

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  3. Hi, Janie! In a World was no doubt inspired by the late great v/o movie trailer announcer Don LaFontaine. The movie's concept seems interesting but, according to you, it falls short in execution and that's a deal breaker for me. I enjoyed Julia as Elaine Benes but have found her annoying in roles she has taken since Seinfeld. Therefore, I will probably pass on the second movie as well.

    I won't have time to watch any movies this weekend anyway because I will be on the dark side of the moon, immersed in family activities beginning later this morning. If you publish more posts tomorrow or over the weekend please understand if I cannot make it over until "Bully For You" on Monday. Thank you, dear friend!

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    1. Yes, In A World was inspired by Don LaFontaine. Julia's character in Enough Said is good when she's having fun with Albert, but when she turns on him because of whiny Marianne and does some kind of weird stuff with her daughter's friend, I don't like her. I'm very sorry that you will be immersed in family activities unless you like being immersed in family activities. It would make me miserable.

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  4. I LOVED the movie, Enough Said. I thought the chemistry between James Gandolfini and Julia Louis-Dreyfus was spot on. I dragged my friend, who had zero desire to see it, and she wound up being blown away by it. I haven't seen In a World and now, I know I didn't miss anything. I love your movie reviews. :)

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    1. Gosh. Thanks. I liked the chemistry between Albert and Eva when they were just happy together. As soon as she started picking on him, I hated it. He didn't deserve to be picked on by a shorter version of his ex-wife.

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    2. I agree with that, Janie. I thought she was tough on him but when they were happy, it was surprisingly good. I liked seeing James in one of his non-Tony roles. The Sopranos was probably one of my favorite series but it is always interesting, to me, to see actors stretch and break out of their typical roles. He was a genius as far as acting goes. I'm listening to, James Gandolfini by Dan Bischoff on Audible. Pretty amazing to learn what he went through to become the actor her was. His passing sure left a void.

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  5. I haven't seen either of these movies but Mrs. Chatterbox watched "Enough Said" but wasn't impressed. Her expectations had been high because we'd just finished watching the Sopranos and Gandolfini was amazing.

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    1. I think I'll miss Tony Soprano till the day I die. My last words will probably be, Tony Soprano, I'm coming to meet you, and I have a talking fish.

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  6. With that opening, I went right to comments. Did you know that you have fabulous commenters? I bet you did. Or do. I'm not really one of them, but I just wanted to point that out. Have an awesome day, Janie.

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    1. I love your comments. They quite often make me snort with laughter and snot shoots out of my nose. Have you visited Rita yet? The baby has finally arrived. It took so long that I started to have imaginary grandma issues, kind of like a man who thinks he's in labor when his wife has a baby.

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  7. Never saw Enough Said. Enough said. ;0)

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