Fifty Shades of Grey (2015)

Lets start this review off properly. I am a 29 year old male. I read all three of the Fifty Shades books. I liked the story and some of the plot lines. The writing was not that good. I ended up skipping through most of the sex scenes during the end of the second book and most of the third book as well. Yes, I know this is not a true depiction of BDSM. No, I don't think this is about an abusive relationship without love. OK...are we ready.

The movie follows the book fairly closely. We saw this happen recently with 2014's Gone Girl where the movie is following very closely with the prose. The casting was a long and drawn out process with fans getting too involved and too upset about something they know nothing about. REMINDER: just because someone looks like a character in your head, doesn't mean they are qualified to play them in a movie. People make a lot of money to make this decision, if you were good at it, you would be in that select group.

The plot is very basic and very overdone in cinema, but we have to rehash it anyways. College senior Anastasia Steele, played by Don Johnson and Melanie Griffiths daughter Dakota Johnson, has to step in and interview twenty-something millionaire Christian Grey, played by Jamie Dornan. She is in awe of him and he seems to change his demeanor around her as well. The interview is a disaster on the surface, but it opens the door for the rest of the plot to unravel. Ana runs into Christian again while working at the hardware store. Again, there are looks and glances that are meant to make the audience swoon. The main joke during this time is Ana's fumbling over her words, but don't expect anything different from these moments than any other movie. Christian takes an interest in Ana and Ana is more than interested in him. She ends up in his hotel room under less than desirable circumstances and from here on they are together most of their days and nights. He needs her to sign a non-disclosure agreement before the relationship and officially begin and he also wants to show her his "playroom". This is the moment where the audience gets to see the fully-realized Red Room of Pain and it is basically what we all thought it was going to be, unless you are terrible clueless and then maybe you connect with Ana more than most of us do since not only is she new to being a submissive to a dominant, she is also new to sex in general. Thus begins her steep decline into the lifestyle of a Christian Grey submissive...except not quite. She isn't sure about this dynamic. She wants more and he doesn't do more. How will this twisted love affair end?!

The most glaring issue with this movie is Jamie Dornan. He isn't Christian Grey. I'm not sure if this is his acting ability, the bad dialogue he was given, or a combination. This is frustrating because Dakota Johnson is Anastasia Steele. She is perfect for this role and I don't see anybody else in the role now that she has owned it so well. The series needs to move forward with Jamie in the the role and we all have to accept that because switching actors is not an option. We can only hope he improves on his next opportunity. I'm sure most of you have already heard that there are certain scenes and "toys" that were not featured in the movie and I don't agree with all of them. The movie hardly gets to show the darker side, and sometimes more fun side, of this life and it is very light on the BDSM. I understand that more of this comes in the next film, but it really seemed like they shied away from the reality of the Red Room.

Since I have given a lot of things that didn't work, here is what does work: the soundtrack. The music is so well done that some of the issues can be forgiven. The music for the ride in Charlie Tango to the music during the gliding sequence and every other song is just so well done. I've always been a believer that the right music can elevate a movie and this is a perfect example.

In closing, I will say that this: if you read the books, you know what to expect, but pull that back a little. There are scenes missing and there is nothing you can do about it. When this movie was in rating limbo at the hands of the MPAA, I was one of the people hoping for a NC-17 rating. Why not? You might has well go for broke and show everything you can. The revenue won't change. Fans were going to see it regardless.

Now, remember how the book ended. You do? Good. The movie ends the same way and if I hadn't read the books, I'd be pissed. The viewers will feel like they sat through a two hour movie for nothing. Maybe they did. I didn't. I really needed to see how this movie poured out onto a screen and I'm glad I did. It isn't perfect, but I have hope for what comes next. It won't be the worst movie of 2015 and it will be far from the best, but fans will hang on every frame and why not? It is always fun to see the book you have read play out in front of you and whips and chains won't hurt you in the theater.

This Is Where I Leave You (2014)

I'm not entirely sure that 4/5 stars for this movie is fair. It might be closer to 4.5/5. There very little that doesn't work in this movie. The plot is simple and the cast is rather star-studded for the basic plot line. My favorites of this cast include Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Dax Shepard, and Adam Driver. I might be biased, but Adam Driver stole the show for me. He plays the youngest of the siblings that have been thrown together. The story revolves around the death of a father. His kids are played by Corey Stoll, Bateman, Fey, and Driver and they all work in this movie. His widow is played by Jane Fonda who is serviceable as the "suspiciously" keeping it together Mom. Jane Fonda tells her children that their Father's last wish was for them to participate in Shiva, the Jewish mourning and remembrance period. No one really wants to take part in this, but they are given no choice since this was the Father's last wish and their Mother is not letting them off the hook. Each day that goes by brings more drama and more story to go along with it. The world is full of dysfunctional families, and some maybe even have this group beat, but you can't deny that you can relate to one of these characters. There are cliched moments, so be ready for those, but in the end this film works for me.

I'm well aware that this film does have some hatred, but it worked for me and some others so maybe you will get something out of it. If nothing else, you will know what Shiva is and how it works.