The humorous, content Tom (Jim Broadbent), with his depressive friend Mary (Lesley Manville)

Every now and then, a movie comes along and reminds you of what you’ve been missing for a while. Mike Leigh’s new drama “Another Year” did just that, in doing both the simplest and yet the hardest thing that a filmmaker can do: Create a world of vibrant, complex, relatable, but most importantly, interesting characters, and bringing us into their lives. Leigh does this with such delicate observation and gentle humor, as he’s done consistently in his career (with works such as “Vera Drake” and “Topsy-Turvy”.

“Another Year” is a portrait of an elderly couple’s lives. Remarkably happy and content, Tom and Gerri are often the host of gatherings of friends and colleagues. The film is divided into four chapters, one for each season of the year, but all in which a different person in their lives is the subject. Not one of them is the same, but they all have a common link: Unhappiness. It’s in the way Leigh depicts this unhappiness, and the way in which his characters go about trying to fix it that make “Another Year” such a warm, refreshing work.

Take Mary, for example. A close friend of Tom & Gerri, she’s a 50-something, hard-drinking woman who still hasn’t found a man to settle down with, and shows no signs of that changing anytime soon. Mary could have been handled as a pathetic, clingy, oblivious caricature. With just the right balance of Leigh’s writing and the actress tackling the part (the wonderful Lesley Manville), she’s brought to life as someone who, despite endless imperfections and unlikable qualities, is still worthy of our empathy and attention  The final shot on the film, focusing only on her face is one of the most heartbreaking, memorable shots I’ve seen in a movie in years.

The ensemble cast, really, are uniformly wonderful. Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen as the film’s principal subjects bring equal doses of charisma, humor, and a subtle yet sweet bond with one another. Another highlight is Peter Wight’s performance as Ken, a middle-aged man mired in self-doubt and hang-ups about his unhealthy eating habits. Like Manville, Wight is never a creature to be pitied, but a man to be understood. I can’t really stress how perfectly the players and the script merge, to create something that’s at once so refreshing and so familiar. There are few phrases more over-used than “breath of fresh air”. But that’s exactly what “Another Year” is. Never really sticking to one genre or one mood, it instead evokes several, creating a portrait of life that dizzies and, more often than not, awes. A

Liam Neeson and January Jones, playing an on-screen couple in one of "Unknown"s quieter moments.

Liam Neeson had an odd career resurgence two years back with the action thriller “Taken”. Long known for more serious, dramatic fare, ever since then he’s appeared in a steady stream of action fare – “The A-Team”, “Clash of the Titans”, “The Next Three Days”, none of which really made a good impression with me. So I was pleasantly surprised to see that his newest effort – the Jaume Collet-Sera-directed “Unknown” – is a well-done, engaging mystery-thriller.

In it, Neeson plays botanist Martin Harris. He and his wife Liz (played by “Mad Men”s January Jones) are in Berlin for a summit of some of the world’s great minds. Just as they arrive at their hotel, Martin realizes he left some baggage at the airport and takes a taxi to retrieve it. Unfortunately, his taxi drives off a bridge and he’s rendered in a coma for four days. When he wakes up and heads to his hotel, however, he’s met with another person there, named Martin Harris, and a wife who claims not to recognize him.

Martin must now claim his identity back, and uncover these people’s motivations for taking his place and robbing him of everything he’s ever had. To assist him, he hires a stout private detective (played by Bruno Ganz in one of the more amusing aspects of the film). He also seeks out the woman, Gina, whose cab the accident took place in, to try and prove his identity.

“Unknown” has a more intriguing premise than most – whereas most action movies operate on a man vs. man scenario, this one deals with identity, and in more ways than one messes with one’s head quite a bit. Neeson’s character’s constant uncertainty gives “Unknown” a certain paranoia that makes it more tense to watch than otherwise, it gives the film a really great sense of urgency and unrest. Flavio Labiano’s cinematography frames Berlin in an interesting, often atmospheric way.

Neeson is dependably solid here, but let’s not kid ourselves and think this is any great stretch for him as an actor. He needs to do very little here aside from speak urgently and run around, and Neeson does so with style and intensity. The side cast — January Jones, Diane Krueger, Frank Langella — are all strong supporting cast members. But it’s Bruno Ganz, the German actor most famous for his take as Hitler in 2004’s “Downfall”, who gives the movie an unexpected, yet welcome quirkiness. Ganz’s stout presence is a sight gag all its own, but his delivery of his lines, bordering on muttering, is perfect.

But alas, “Unknown” is at its core, a mystery-thriller, and so, like so many of its kind, constantly conjures plot twists that keep you interested at first, but dizzy later down the road. This is particularly evident in the final 20-minute-stretch of “Unknown”, where there’s a massive plot revelation that feels more random than it does important.

All that said though, in the barren cinematic landscape that is February, “Unknown” is an impressively made, competently acted thriller. It gets a little too ahead of itself, and bungles some revelations that should have hit harder, but it’ll keep you guessing and keep you content for two hours. B

I caught this film thanks to the Sundance Film Festival USA, a roadshow in which films from last week’s Sundance Film Festival tour the nation. They came to the Michigan Theater here in Ann Arbor, and director Miguel Artera was present for a Q&A.

The unlikely group of friends (left-to-right: Isiah Whitlock, John C. Reilly, Anne Heche, & Ed Helms) in "Cedar Rapids".

“The Hangover”, was in many ways, one of the influential films of the past 10 years. Aside from Hollywood’s since-countless misguided attempts to recapture the odd magic of that film, it’s made just about all involved a bona-fide movie star. Enter the new independent film, “Cedar Rapids”. It’s a vehicle for “Hangover” star Ed Helms, his first starring role. He plays mild-mannered insurance agent Tim Lippe, who’s never ventured outside his small Wisconsin hometown. So when he’s given a chance to leave town to go to a “big-city” insurance convention in the town where the film gleans its name, Tim jumps at it.

In Cedar Rapids (interestingly enough though, filmed here in Ann Arbor), Tim gets into various adventures, including befriending an eclectic group of fellow conventioneers (played by Anne Heche, Isiah Whitlock and the great John C. Reilly), exposing corruption within the powers that be at his insurance company, and sampling many an illicit substance.

The whole cast do their best, with solid results. Ed Helms himself in the title role doesn’t have much variation as a character, he’s stuck in a one-note naivete that I admit is often really charming. Isiah Whitlock (from the HBO series “The Wire”) is actually pretty hilarious here, mostly in the references where he’s…well, referencing the HBO series “The Wire”. But the real scene-stealer would have to be John C. Reilly, playing Dean Zeigler.

Zeigler is basically a variation of the lovable oaf Reilly’s perfected in his work with Will Ferrell (“Step Brothers”, “Talladega Nights”). He’s oblivious, obnoxious, and yet completely lovable at the same time. Whenever “Cedar Rapids” hits a flat note, Reilly steps in and single-handedly saves it each and every time. Anne Heche and Sigourney Weaver are decent in supporting roles as romantic associates of Tim, as well.

It’s not the cast that’s the problem, once again. It’s just the script that they have to deliver that often times falters. “Cedar Rapids” is a movie not without its charms, but it never really takes off either. It sort of stays in a dramatic slumber for the whole film, with most events never really feeling consequential or important. It’s essentially a series of very amusing skits, but without much pull to it. C+

I caught this film thanks to the Sundance Film Festival USA, a roadshow in which films from last week’s Sundance Film Festival tour the nation. They came to the Michigan Theater here in Ann Arbor, and I caught up with the producer, Mary Jane Skalski. “Win Win” is set to be released on March 18th.

Paul Giamatti has the best eyes in Hollywood.

Walking out of my screening of “Win Win”, this was the first thing that came to mind. Both in this film and in Giamatti’s body of work in general, through little expressions and glances of resignation, he somehow conveys emotions that hit hard and resonate deeply. That’s why he’s one of my favorite working actors, and that’s why “Win Win” was such a pleasure to watch. Because in this movie, Giamatti starts off as a man, Mike, who is doing what he loves (moonlighting as a wrestling coach), but somehow feels a certain dissatisfaction. This movie is about him coming into his own and finding purpose.

It’s odd, how this happens. See, a troubled 16-year old, Kyle, lands on his doorstep with nowhere else to go. Mike and his family take him in, but are surprised to find that Kyle is a fantastic wrestler. Mike puts him on the team. What follows is a somewhat standard sports drama…think “Blind Side” without the mildly racist undertones.

Although, as I described earlier, Giamatti is no doubt the leading man in the cast, it’s a much more ensemble-based effort than I would have imagined. Amy Ryan give solid support as Giamatti’s wife, but it’s Jeffrey Tambor and Bobby Carnavale as Giamatti’s fellow wrestling-coaches that walk away with any scene they’re in. They provide much of the film’s humor, playing quirky yet still realistic, likable characters.

If there was a trip-up in casting, it was teenager Alex Schaffer. Schaffer plays Kyle, which is without a doubt one of the key roles in the film. I’ve heard that the crew were looking to cast a wrestler that could act, rather than an actor that could wrestle, and it definitely shows at points. Schaffer communicates feelings of angst and frustration effectively enough and is a likable kid, but it’s in the more emotional moments where Schaffer falters quite a bit.

Director Tom McCarthy’s script (oddly enough, written with his high-school wrestling partner Joe Tiboni) comes to life beautifully here. You don’t quite realize how well-done it is until you find yourself cheering, laughing or brooding within a 10-minute span, all done effortlessly. It’s a testament to how close you become with these people in the film.

“Win Win” is a movie with very modest ambitions. It aims not to provoke deep thought. Rather, all it really wants to do is stir your soul, and leave you feeling a bit more happy than before you stepped in. And thanks to the warm, interesting characters and good humor, it does exactly that. B+

Ewan McGregor & Jim Carrey in one of the quieter moments of "I Love You Phillip Morris".

“I Love You Phillip Morris” cheats you. Often. There will often times be a build-up emotionally, only for the movie to show you that it just screwed you over with a smile on it’s face. It takes after its main character that way; the con-man Steven Russell (played by Jim Carrey). Russell lives a flamboyantly gay lifestyle, pulling off numerous frauds and con-jobs to cover his endless spending. These eventually land him in jail, where he meets a man by the name of Phillip Morris (Ewan McGregor). It’s pretty much love at first sight for these two, and the movie covers the span of about 15 years as Steven & Phillip struggle to stay together (seeing as Russell keeps landing back in jail for his illegal activities to support them as a couple).

Dark as this may seem, the oddest thing about “I Love You Phillip Morris” is how it can deliver a scene that both breaks your heart and makes you laugh out loud. We laugh because, at face value, it’s traditional Jim Carrey-shtick, but we feel sadness because he’s doing all this to pursue a love that he refuses to accept just cannot work out.

It’s the weird balance between the hilarious and the heartbreaking where “Phillip Morris” gains its personality and in my opinion, its greatness. All of this is held up by Jim Carrey, in a (predictably) high-energy yet mature, fleshed-out performance. For every little joke or stunt his character Russell will pull, there will be a moment where you can’t help but pity this often really clueless character. He does a hard job, in making us sympathize with and understand a criminal. It’s great work, what he does here.

Ewan McGregor has some fantastic moments as the title character, Phillip Morris. But what I didn’t expect? That Carrey and McGregor, two straight male actors, honestly have a fantastic on-screen chemistry together, which is important considering the entire movie is about the dynamic between these two actors. I’d go so far as to say they click together better than most heterosexual couples I’ve seen on-screen in a while.

The writing here is also definitely worth noting. “Bad Santa” writers Glenn Ficarro and John Requa are the writer-directors here, and just like that past effort they write great, snappy dialogue. It grants all the characters really funny things to say, but grounds it in reality so that the laughs don’t come at the expense of our respect for these people.

If there’s a fault with “Phillip Morris”, it’s laid out in the first sentence of this review: The movie constantly one-ups us with new knowledge or developments. This is often times charming and entertaining, but sometimes comes off a bit too strong in moments where restraint would have worked best.

But overall, how can I complain? “Phillip Morris” is a great little slice of entertainment that juggles elements of comedy, crime and romance in a breezy, fun and occasionally heartbreaking way. I’ll just say this movie made me smile, and leave it at that. You take it from here. A-

First-time director Derek Cienfrance has been trying to get “Blue Valentine” made for the last 12 years. Watching the end product, I can see why. Because I’m going to be totally honest with you: The movie destroyed me. It took any trace of positive energy or mood that I had, and smashed it to little pieces. But then, reflecting on it, I was awed. Awed at what a balancing act the very nature of the film is, awed at the amazing work from the two leads, Ryan Gosling & Michelle Williams.

“Blue Valentine” has been, oddly enough for a film of its low budget, highly publicized, thanks to the MPAA’s now-revoked NC-17 rating (on account of one particularly graphic love scene). Although I am outraged and offended at their childish, stupid decision, I feel it works out eventually to the film’s benefit. After all, the controversy will probably lure more people to the film than wouldn’t otherwise bother.

“Blue Valentine”s focus is the rapidly collapsing marriage of Dean and Cindy: Dean an intelligent underachiever and Cindy a more stubborn realist. The movie intercuts between their past moments of courtship and joy, with their bitter, resentful present-day lives. This is really effective in many ways. It allows us to build an emotional foundation and understand these characters. It allows us to appreciate the extent to which their relationship falls apart, and feel for them when it does.

Gosling & Williams are just brilliant here. They both flesh out these characters in incredibly compelling yet realistic ways. They make Dean and Cindy characters that are both relatable and interesting on their own. This, of course, makes their clashing all the more painful to watch.

I’m too young to experience love, or even to truly appreciate it for what it is. I know that. But walking out of “Blue Valentine”, tears in my eyes, I felt as if I maybe knew a little more about it, as if I could feel a little deeper. And if that doesn’t speak as to a film’s greatness, what does? A

Self-important films about self-important people tend to turn me off. They often lack an emotional core or well-defined characters. So why the intentionally hollow, abstract new Sofia Coppola film “Somewhere” intrigued me as much as it did, I have no idea. It’s surprising, I guess. But it’s also beautiful.

Bearing many similarities to Sofia’s past Oscar-winning work “Lost in Translation”, (primarily the exploration of ennui), “Somewhere” still feels distinctive and fresh. It’s about an actor, Johnny Marco (Stephen Dorff) who couldn’t be less satisfied with the life he lives. He drags himself through his days, aimlessly and endlessly partying and promoting. Pursuing nothing, absorbing everything. It’s only when his 11-year old daughter Cleo (Elle Fanning, younger sibling of Dakota) enters his life that Johnny begins to make a change.

“Somewhere” is a movie that says almost nothing. Dialogue is rare and when it occurs, it’s pretty much for characters passing the time. There will often be long stretches of silence where the scene is essentially just of Johnny going through the motions. But these never bore, they only help convey the emotions (isolation, depression) the film wants to sell. It breaks your heart.

As Marco, Stephen Dorff (in his first starring role that I can recall) is appropriately disillusioned. He does a great job carrying the film, at least at face value. I say “at face value” because the real emotional heft of the film lies in little Elle Fanning. See, while the movie may be about Johnny, the most resonant bit of the film is, no doubt, Elle Fanning’s character, Cleo. While she may be the cause for Johnny’s move from his hollow lifestyle, he still breaks her heart. The way Fanning conveys this, through little glances away from her father, through little twitches of her lip, is fantastic.

The score is also worth noting in the film. The French-pop band (and personal favorite of mine) Phoenix picked the songs for this film, and more often than not, they complement the on-screen actions in truly beautiful ways, whether it’s songs by The Strokes, T.Rex, or Phoenix themselves.

“Somewhere” may not be a perfect film, but it’s sure beyond most criticisms I can think of. Though initially cold and distant, the film gradually reveals itself to be something deeper, something more. Something great. A-

2010 has been a good year for new life being breathed into old genres. No clearer is this on display than in “The Fighter”. At face value it’s a traditional sports flick, with Mark Wahlberg as an up-and-coming boxer named Micky Ward who has had something of a string of bad luck lately with his fights.

No thanks to his large Lowell, MA-based family. Though they mean well, his mother/manager (Melissa Leo) doesn’t know how to promote him, and his half-brother/trainer Dicky (an unrecognizable Christian Bale) is addicted to crack and very unreliable.

The movie is about the gestation of Micky’s comeback. But before he can come into his own, he must learn to separate his family from his career. So, in many ways, “The Fighter” is refreshing because although it focuses on boxing, the primary conflict is not whether Micky wins a fight or not, its whether he can stabilize his hectic family life.

It’s because of this different approach to the tried-and-true story that “The Fighter” feels fresh, and that it overcomes countless potential flaws to be one of the better movies of the year.

The film has an urgency and an importance to it that many of its genre lack. Mainly because of the really relatable performance by its lead, Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg has literally been training for this role for the last half-dozen years, and it shows. He does a superb job at handling all the conflict his character must face, be it emotional (in dealing with his family) or physical (during his actual boxing bouts).

But amazingly, as good as Wahlberg is, he is actually the weakest of the four principal leads. Amy Adams, so often cast as a weaker type, highly impresses playing Wahlberg’s tough-as-nails bartender girlfriend. Melissa Leo is also excellent as his mother. Her slight flamboyance in this role is a sharp (and impressive) contrast to the gritty, minimal work she displayed in her previous roles.

But the star of the show is, no doubt, Christian Bale. I’ve long considered him one of the best actors of his generation, and he easily delivers his best post-”American Psycho” work here. Bale once again displays an uncanny devotion to his work (he lost around 60 pounds to play the physically decrepit Dicky). He gives such a real, genuine, vivid portrayal of such a complex guy. Dicky is a guy that can wreck peoples’ lives yet charm them at the same time. Bale’s performance as him is an amazing transformation.

David O. Russell helms this film, which is a bit of an odd choice. I mean, his past works range from satiric war film “Three Kings” (one of my all-time favorites, it’s worth noting) to existentialist dramedy “I Heart Huckabees”. His films tend to have higher aspirations than typical fare. But rest assured, he brings his trademark directorial approach to “The Fighter”, which is to say a very kinetic, stylish feel.

He takes many nice little touches to immerse us in this venue. He uses handheld cameras in order to give us a closer, more intimate look at these characters lives. He’ll mute the color palette in the boxing scenes, to make them look like authentic matches from the time period (early 1990s). These little touches only make us buy into the story all the more.

“The Fighter” is a movie that has been made before. It’s a typical underdog sports movie. But because of the invigorating, fresh approach brought to it, I can honestly say its better than most of its kind, and most of its year. A

Great directors often take risks with their films. But what happens when consistently risky directors opt to play it safe just a bit? One such result is the latest Coen Bros. film, “True Grit”. It’s as straightforward a Western as any in recent memory.

Teenage girl Mattie Ross (played by newcomer Hailee Steinfeld) has recently been robbed of a father by the drunken criminal Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin). To exact revenge, she hires U.S. marshall Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) and a Texas ranger named LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) to take out Chaney.

“True Grit” is probably the most restrained work of the Coens’ career, the work where they’ve held back their little quirks and oddities the most. Gone is their bleak, borderline absurdist outlook on their characters and the world they inhabit. This is a good thing though, as instead they’re stripped down to just their knack for great storytelling. “True Grit” is a tight, taut slice of Western entertainment. It doesn’t run a frme too long. Every moment is devoted to setting the situation, setting the characters, and then clashing the two against one another.

The lively performances from the cast really bring this conflict to life. Jeff Bridges (in his second blockbuster in as many weeks) displays Cogburn with equal dosages of wit, clumsiness and well, grit. It’s fun stuff. Matt Damon plays way against type as the lovable if dimwitted LaBoeuf, who means well in his quest to aid Mattie even if his temper occasionally gets the best of him. Damon is pretty close to perfect here, as is Josh Brolin in practically a cameo as the man they’re pursuing.

But the key performance is Hailee Stienfeld as Mattie Ross. As far as I know this is her first screen performance, and she displays more life and depth than most actors who’ve done ten. She matches and in some cases outdoes her veteran co-stars.

Steinfeld goes through the wringer in this film: wielding guns, fighting snakes, witnessing murders. But though those moments impress, its in her quieter moments where she dazzles. Look for the scene where she negotiates the sale of her late father’s horses in order to pay off her recently-hired hitmen. You can feel a great actress coming into her own for the first time, only ten minutes into her first film.

The Coens are adapting a novel here and reportedly stay really true to the original Charles Portis novel, adapting entire dialogue exchanges. And yet they handle the material in a fairly Coen-esque way, with their typical dark humor and bizarre side characters. The dialogue is excellent, although I could never really tell which stuff was theirs and which came from the novel.

“True Grit” is the sort of movie I wish was made more often: An intelligent, well-crafted and entertaining genre exercise (the genre here being the American Western). It heralds the arrival of a new acting talent, Hailee Steinfeld, and reasserts the talent of many others involved. A typically great effort from two filmmakers greatly atypical. A