Taken 2 (Released in 2012) - Sequel to fast paced action (starring Liam Neeson, Rade Šerbedžija, Maggie Grace and Famke Janssen)

Taken was an interesting movie and a big hit. The concept of having an unlikely superhuman type of character (wrapped in the body of a normal person, although with a highly skilled background) who is possessed with getting his daughter back from whoever had kidnapped her, proved to be a package that was very interesting for viewers, and the movie was a hit, both commercially and with critics. Liam Neeson was an unlikely looking extra-ordinary man, who when faced with a kidnapping happening in another country, is able to figure out what to do and start executing on such a plan, was fun to watch. And when he started on his killing spree, using guns just like that, or when he wired up the main kidnapper to electric cables for interrogation, all of that was attractive to viewers (he was trying to get information about his kidnapped daughter, wasn't he?). However, all such movies have a loose end - he killed a number of people, won't their folks want revenge ?
Well, Taken 2 is based on the concept of the family members of the killed villains wanting their revenge, and they are also ruthless in terms of this revenge. So, when Marko was killed, strapped to an electric cable and died of electrocution, his father wants revenge and promises that he will get the killer back to Albania, to suffer as the family of Marko has suffered. However, it is not clear as to who the killer is (after all, Neeson had killed almost everybody in the first movie), so Marko's father, Murad, goes to Paris, looking for the former intelligence friend of Neeson whose card was found near where most of the people were killed. He gets some information from this guy and then kills him and his family, and is now on the hunt for Neeson and his family.




Neeson is in Istanbul for a piece of work, and finds Lenore (ex-wife) and Kim (daughter) ready to surprise him over there. And then the action hots up. Kim wants Lenore and Neeson to go out for lunch while she would remain the hotel. However, Neeson spots them being tailed, and this starts the explosive action. He has to give up when Lenore is captured, but is able to warn Kim off, who just manages to escape the people hunting for her at the hotel. Later, when he has been captured, he is able to use a hidden phone (they did not search him for a hidden phone) to tell Kim to go to the American Embassy, but she refuses and persuades him to let her help, and he agrees (another weird thing, agreeing to put his daughter in danger). In the meantime, to make him suffer, Murad cuts Lenore's neck slightly, enough for her to bleed and hangs her upside down so that she can bleed in front of him.
The next part is fun - he tells his daughter that she has to explode grenades at regular intervals through which he will be able to use the sound to determine the location where she has to go to (seems a bit out of the world for me, but am not an ex-CIA operative, so maybe I do not know enough). She finally arrives at the house where he is, and he is able to get out and take Kim with him, but Lenore is recaptured.
Finally putting Kim in the safety of the US embassy, he is able to retrace the path and find where Lenore is, and after dispatching every other bad guy, he is finally left with Murad in front of his gun. He offers to let Murad go to end this killing urge, but when Murad agrees and then tries to kill him, he kills Murad (but thankfully, this does not form the basis for Taken 3).
The movie made a lot of money and the performances were also appreciated, but the surprised of the first film always makes it more difficult for the second film. Even though stuff such as using grenades to get location was a twist, the movie still seems to follow a regular script. You will like it if you like action, but it is not the same as the first version.

Mary Reilly - Released in 1996 - Starring Julia Roberts, John Malkovich, George Cole

Released in 1996, Mary Reilly is based on the novel of the same name by Valerie Martin. The book is also loosely based on and inspired by the Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. As in the novel, the movie follows the story of a simple house maid played by Julia Roberts, and her attraction and revulsion of her Master, Dr. Jekyll, played by John Malkovich. Directed by Stephen Frears and written by Christopher Hampton, the movie has brought back together the same team well known for the Oscar winning movie Dangerous Liaisons. The other actors in the movie include Glenn Close, George Cole, and Michael Gambon among others.
The movie begins with the blossoming friendship of Dr. Jekyll (John Malkovich) and his servant, Mary (Julia Roberts). But when Dr. Jekyll announces that he has hired an assistant, the entire house is abuzz with confusion and speculation. Days go by, and the staff, Mary included try to fathom the mystery of Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll’s new assistant. A little more Goth and sinister twists are added, when Mary is asked by Dr. Jekyll to deliver a letter to Mrs. Farraday at the whorehouse. She is to let a room for Mr. Hyde.
Mary like the rest of the staff is curious as to Mr. Hyde’s habits. And one day she follows him into Dr. Jekyll’s lab, where she sees him handing over a cheque for blood money. However, in an attempt to escape so as to go unnoticed she hides in the lab, only to find the exit locked. When Hyde discovers her he merely smiles at her and hands her the key.
The following day, when a hurt Dr. Jekyll sends her to Mrs. Farraday with yet another letter, Mrs Farraday is furious. She shows Mary the room she had let to Mr. Hyde. It is covered with blood everywhere including the ceiling. She returns to Dr. Jekyll with a blood stained handkerchief of his from Mrs. Farraday and a message from the madam demanding that Dr. Jekyll do whatever is necessary to cover up the matter.




Mary finally meets the enigmatic yet mysterious Mr. Hyde and realizes she is drawn to his passionate side. Jekyll asks Mary to go on an errand with Hyde, where they get talking and get to know each other. Hyde taunts her by telling her that Jekyll finds her very attractive. Over time they get to know each other.
One day Mrs. Farraday comes over to meet Jekyll and demands more money from him in order to continue maintaining her secret. The argument between the two continues and Mary who has overheard the conversation steers clear of it by heading to the garden to water the flowers. However, she notices the light in the lab go out. And when she goes to investigate, all she sees is a pool of blood on the lab table. However, she does not see Hyde who is hiding after having committed the murder of Mrs Farraday.
A little while later Mary receives news that her mother has passed away. And she heads out to make arrangements. However, she is grabbed by Hyde who was hiding in an alley after being chased by the police. When she returns to the house, she is questioned by the police in the matter of the death of Member of Parliament, Sir Carew, who incidentally also happened to be a school friend of Dr. Jekyll. She tells them nothing. But the police are suspicious especially with so many deaths surrounding Dr. Jekyll.
However, later Dr. Jekyll tells Mary she should not have covered for Hyde and that he is removing Hyde from his employment. But Mary is stunned to find Hyde the next morning in Jekyll’s bed, especially since he had been dismissed. She tries to raise an alarm, but is stopped by Hyde who then reveals that Jekyll and he is one and the same person. And that Jekyll turned into Hyde every time he would take a serum for his depression. In order to return to Dr. Jekyll, Hyde would inject himself with the antidote.
Hyde makes his advances on Mary wishing to make love to her. However, a very shocked and stunned Mary then demands to leave. She returns to the kitchen contemplating what to do next when Dr. Jekyll enters and demands that another assistant take a sample of the serum to the lab to have it analyzed and also to have certain changes made in it successfully. However, the assistant returns with no success on the matter. In the meantime, Mary decides to leave the establishment. She packs her things and on her way out decides to stop by the lab.
However, when she enters, she is attacked by Hyde. But he doesn’t kill her. Instead he injects himself with the antidote. She witnesses how Hyde transforms back into Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll tells her that Hyde had added a poison to the antidote, and dies in her arms. The last shot of the movie focuses on Jekyll the next morning, who though was dead, has transformed into Hyde and is awake and smiling.
The movie has a dark, gloomy feel to it. It draws it viewers to the gothic, frightening world which was captured in the writings of Valerie Martin. While it is loyal to the original, it is in many ways better than Robert Louis Stevenson’s version, mainly because it does not focus of Dr. Jekyll turning into some sort of “Wolfman”. Neither does it focus of theatrics. What it does successfully achieve is the belief of something evil, and one woman’s psychology of finding both good and evil in one man.
All the performances are restrained. Julia Roberts doesn’t have many dialogues but successfully portrays a woman who is naïve and innocent yet comes from a tormented past. John Malkovich portrays Hyde and Jekyll with not much difference excepting the presence and lack of facial hair as Jekyll and Hyde respectively. The sets are vast, magnificent yet overbearing all at once. But overall, Frears has successfully accomplished what he had set out to achieve, and that is trying to create a film which is visually appealing and free from stereotypical clichés of present day horror movies.

Michael Collins (Released in 1996) - Starring Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Stephen Rea, Alan Rickman, Julia Roberts

A historical biopic which was released in 1996, Michael Collins is based on the life and war efforts of the Irish Patriot and revolutionary, Michael Collins. Directed by Neil Jordan, the movie offers viewers a glimpse into the Irish Republican Army’s fight against the British Empire. The star cast includes Liam Neeson, who plays a very convincing Michael Collins, Aidan Quinn as Harry Boland (Michael’s closest friend and compatriot), Julia Roberts as Kitty Kiernan, the love interest of both Michael and Harry, Ian Hart as Joe O’Reilly and Alan Rickman, as Eamon de Valera, among others.
The movie opens in 1922, with Kitty Kiernan mourning the death of Michael Collins, and Joe O’Reilly attempting to console her. From there it flashes back to 1916, when Collins and his compatriots were captured by the British Army. The movie portrays Collins’ foresight and innovation as a leader, especially when he is shown to be telling Boland that next time they would not play by the British rules, but rather make up their own. The movie shows how Collins recognized the need for guerilla warfare and the pointlessness of conventional attacks.
However, de Valera strongly opposes his tactics and supports the conventional rules of fighting with the British. After Collins’ release from an internment camp, he is conducting a rally when it is attacked and he is injured. His friend Boland rescues him and together they hide out and recoup at a friend’s farm. That is where they meet the pretty Kitty, who begins a romance with Boland.




Their struggles continue, and soon Collins receives a tip that the British are going to arrest de Valera and the Cabinet. De Valera has other ideas which do not include going into hiding. He believes that if they are arrested there would be a huge outcry from the public, demanding their release. The Cabinet is arrested, but Boland and Collins manage to escape. However, de Valera sees it as a threat when he realizes that in spite of being arrested, there was no protest from the public, all because Collins was not imprisoned.
After Collins and Boland break Valera out of prison, he insists on meeting with Woodrow Wilson in US so as to seek recognition, and asserts that Boland should travel with him. Once Valera leaves for the United States, Collins is left in charge and he orders the IRA to carry out various surprise attacks, which put the IRA at an advantage. However, when Valera returns, he insists they go back to conventional formal military attacks. Collins advises him against it, but not heeding Collins advice, Valera goes ahead with an attack on The Custom House, which fails badly, with many IRA members killed and captured.
Worried that the IRA are on their last leg, Collins is surprised when the British call a cease fire. Valera then orders Collins to go as a negotiator to England, knowing fully that Collins is not one. And when Collins returns after having signed an Anglo-Irish Treaty (1921) Valera is enraged that he was not told of the terms of the Treaty before it was signed. Collins argues for the treaty, while Valera and his supporters are staunchly against it. Both the sides try hard to sway the Irish public in their favour.
When anti-Treaty Republicans attack Collins, he barely manages to escape. In the aftermath, he further solidifies his already blooming relationship with Kitty, who throughout the movie is shown to be torn between the two men. Collins asks her to marry him and she accepts. Finally the Irish people vote to approve the Treaty. However, Valera refuses to accept this and orders the IRA to fight against its former comrades. Collins who is now Chief of Staff of the National Army hates that he has to stand up against his fellow compatriots all because of Valera.
But the Treaty had been signed, and as a result, the Irish Free State Army is given an ultimatum to deal with IRA, or else the British Army will. Despite Collins attempts to capture his long standing friend and compatriot Boland, he gets killed while trying to escape. Distraught by his friend’s death, Collins tries to reach out to Valera to try and arrange a peace treaty. However, without the knowledge of de Valera, an arbitrator informs Collins that Valera is willing to meet. Collins walks right into a set up where he is killed. The film ends with Collins’ funeral.
While the movie shows Collins in a heroic light, it is de Valera’s character which is portrayed in a rather weak light. It may be true that he was responsible for some of the tragic events that took place, but to cast him as an enemy of the Irish state on equal footing with the British is a tad too controversial. However, overall, the movie and its focus on Collins throw some light on the Irish struggle. The movie also argues that if Collins had not died he might have succeeded in uniting Ireland and saving many lives.
The only area the movie falls short of expectations is the romantic angle or rather triangle between Collins, Kitty and Boland. The romantic scenes only serve as a break from the movie and not much else. But on the whole, the movie is well made, and worth a watch, especially to understand the heroism of Collins and his struggle for a united, liberated Ireland.

Hook (Released in 1991) - A fantasy film - Starring Dustin Hoffman, Robin Williams, Julia Roberts, Bob Hoskins

A 1991 fantasy movie directed by Steven Spielberg, Hook is based on the concept and idea of the beloved children’s book character - Peter Pan, growing up. A multi star cast movie with Robin Williams as a grown up Peter Pan (known as Peter Banning in the present day), Julia Roberts as Tinker Bell, Dustin Hoffman as Captain Hook, Maggie Smith as Granny Wendy, Bob Hoskins as Smee, Amber Scott and Charlie Korsmo as Peter Banning’s kids, and Caroline Goodall as Mrs Banning; Hook serves as a sequel to Peter and Wendy (1911).
The movie starts with Peter Pan all grown up, going by the name of Peter Banning. He is a successful corporate lawyer, with no recollection of his past as Peter Pan, and no memory of his life before the age of 12. He is shown to be more in touch with his cell phone than his children. Eventually the entire Banning family travels on a holiday to London to meet Granny Wendy, who is being honored for her work in setting up an orphanage. Granny Wendy remembers Peter’s past and opens up a plethora of adventure and magic in the viewers, when she asks Peter a simple question - “you really don’t remember who you are Peter?”
One night when Peter and his wife are out celebrating, Captain Hook abducts Peter’s children and takes them to Neverland. Peter comes home to find his children missing. Later that night, Tinker Bell confronts Peter and forces him to go back to Neverland with her to save his children. But, seeing a grown slightly out of shape Peter Pan, agitates Captain Hook who wants to kill Peter and his children. Finally, Smee reasons with Hook and deduces that spending a long time away from Neverland must have wiped away Peter’s memories. At the same time, Tinker Bell pleads with Hook to give Peter 3 days to prepare for a fight against Hook.



With 3 days granted to him, Peter and Tinker Bell go to the Lost Boys’ Home to prepare. None of the boys there believe him to be Peter Pan and go all out to try and humiliate him. Meanwhile Hook tries and turns Peter’s children against him, by feeding lies. While his daughter stays steadfast in her belief that her father will save them, Peter’s son Jack looks to Hook as a father figure. Through his journey back in Neverland, Peter discovers himself again, the time he had spent as a child in Neverland with Tinker Bell, the mistakes he has made in his adult life and the true value of family.
After 3 days he readies himself for a fight against Captain Hook, with the support of the orphans and Tinker Bell. He saves his children, defeats Hook and goes back to London to celebrate with his family. While the movie is a good concept, the promise of magic (considering it is a Steven Spielberg movie) leaves a lot to be desired. With the famous white light that sparks off outside his window, waiting to take Peter back to Neverland, as a viewer, we hope for a view of the lush green island full of fun, magic and surprises.
But Neverland fails to deliver. With more red-brown tones used throughout the island, Neverland feels more like it is witnessing a terrible draught. Also, there are too many props and too much happening on the costume front. The set looks exactly like a studio set, and not an exotic magical island. Most of the actors, including Hoffman and Roberts perform their parts more as a duty than something exciting. Robin Williams struggles hard to keep the magic alive, and he does succeed to an extent. But, one actor can do only so much to keep the magic alive. The fencing scenes between Williams and Hoffman towards the end leave a lot to be desired. Almost all Asian movies have tremendously better sword play than the one choreographed for this movie. All in all, the movie is worth one watch, specifically for the younger audience. But, with a storyline that starts off with a magical character having grown up, one does expect a lot more than what is delivered.

Dying Young (released in 1991) - Starring Julia Roberts, Campbell Scott and Vincent D'Onofrio

Based on a book of the same name, written by Marti Leimbach, Dying Young was directed by Joel Schumacher, and released in 1991. This romantic comedy, before its release, was pinned as one of the biggest blockbusters to release in the summer of 1991. However, after its release all it got was negative reviews. The star cast included Julia Roberts and Campbell Scott among others.
The movie opens with Hilary (played by Julia Roberts) making it plenty clear that she has next to no luck in the love and work department. Having broken up with her cheating boyfriend, Hilary, who now lives with her mother (played by Ellen Burstyn) decides to answer an ad in the papers, for an attractive woman with little (or no) work experience. Dressed in a red miniskirt, she decides to go try her luck for this job.
Without even an interview she gets selected to take care of a young man, who is shown to be battling leukemia. Donned with the duty of taking care of Victor Geddes (played by Campbell Scott) who is a 28 year old, rich and well educated man, Hilary becomes his live-in caretaker. However, she isn’t sure whether she is up for the task especially after having seen his reactions to chemotherapy. But, obviously she rises to the challenge, reads up on leukemia and tries to be a better homemaker/caretaker.
Over time, it is shown that Victor’s chemotherapy is complete and the two head down to the coast, where Victor has yet another home. All this while, Victor’s father hasn’t been given a strong role. He is shown to be indifferent at the most. The happy couple continues to live on the coast where their relationship evolves to love, all the while Victor doesn’t share with Hilary the fact that he has been taking morphine to hide the pain and that his chemo hasn’t actually been completed.




However, during one dinner party with friends, when Victor acts aggressively and later collapses on the floor, Hilary rummages through the garbage and finds the syringes. She confronts Victor and finds out the truth. She calls up Victor’s father and tells him everything. He promises to pick up Victor in the morning and take him to the hospital. Hilary and Victor have another talk, and Victor convinces Hilary that he will go back but wants to stay for one more party. Hilary agrees and goes to call Victor’s father to let him know, only to come back and find Victor packing his back in order to flee.
Yet another confrontation and “supposed to be” emotional declarations of how Victor has lost hope and Hilary loves Victor, take place. Hilary however finally convinces him to fight and get back to his chemotherapy. The movie closes with the two of them walking out of Victor’s house to go to the hospital.
Although nobody actually dies in the movie (young or old), the characters and their constant dribble of self-pity does make the audience die a little bit inside. The plot has a vague similarity to Pretty Woman, but without the fun elements or Julia Roberts contagious and vivacious attitude. While the movie is about a young man, his relation with his caretaker, and how they fall in love while he learns valuable life lessons from her; it fails to create the same warmth and humor as Pretty Woman.
Since Campbell Scott fails to generate any warmth or sympathy for his character, it would be wrong to blame Julia Roberts for lacking humor and vibrancy. The filmmaking itself is not too great, with dramatic effects being thrown in, without actually being seen through. Overall, the movie got negative reviews and after painfully sitting through more than one and half hours of this movie, one can understand why.

Sleeping with the Enemy (Released in 1991) - Starring Julia Roberts, Patrick Bergin and Kevin Anderson

Released in 1991, this psychological thriller is based on a novel of the same name, by Nancy Price. Directed by Joseph Ruben, the movie’s star cast includes Julia Roberts, Patrick Bergin and Kevin Anderson. Even though it was a box office success, the movie received many negative reviews. Especially since the beginning of the movie raises expectations of the viewer, only to make it come crashing down through the remaining one and a half hours of the movie.
The plot of the movie starts off with some hope. Laura Burney (played by Julia Roberts) is the wife of a millionaire investment counselor, Martin (played by Patrick Bergin). However, everything in their fancy beach house is not hunky-dory. Trapped in a marriage where she is used as a trophy wife, and then abused at home on account of Martin’s Obsessive Compulsive Disorders (OCDs) Laura is looking for a way out. She decides to fake her own death by pretending to have drowned in an accident, when the two of them go boating.
However, having made it known to Martin that she cannot swim, Laura pretends to have drowned and then heads home to grab her “go away” bag and flush her wedding ring down the toilet. She moves to Iowa, under a new name. She even had Martin believe her mother is dead, and then gets her shifted into a nursing home. In her new set up under a new name, she befriends her next door neighbour, Ben Woodward, who also happens to be a drama teacher at the University of Northern Iowa. But soon has to confide everything in Ben, since he finds out that her new identity is not real.
While her life seems to be gradually getting better, Martin gets a phone call at the office from the YWCA about Laura. From that phone call he learns that Laura had secretly been taking swimming lessons, and his doubts start to play up. He goes home and somehow finds the wedding ring in the toilet bowl. It apparently did not get flushed when it was supposed to. He then tracks down Laura’s “supposedly dead” mother and manages to pry information, about Laura’s current location, from her.



He then follows Laura who is seen with Ben to her home. But, before he does so, he visits Laura’s new home and in rearranges methodically Laura’s towels and kitchen shelves in a very “slasher-meets - obsessive compulsive behavior man” kind of way! Laura sees these rearrangements and begins to get worried. Martin having followed Laura and Ben home from a local fair, confronts her while brandishing a gun. What follows is typical, with Ben trying to intervene and getting knocked out in the process. Laura struggling with Martin, somehow managing to get the gun in her control and finally shooting him, after placing a call to 991 stating she has an intruder in the house.
Only Martin isn’t dead, and he tries to take the gun from Laura and shoots. But thankfully by then the bullets in the gun are exhausted along with the audience’s patience. Martin finally dies and Laura and the now revived Ben hug over Martin’s dead body which was holding Laura’s wedding ring.
Having started with some pretty impactful scenes, the movie raises the expectations of the viewer. But, soon it turns into a typical slasher movie. And halfway through, it goads the audience to do the one thing they should not do in such movies, and that is try to find logic. For example, why did that ring not flush itself? Or was that toilet left unused for so many days? Or why and how did the YWCA call up Martin on his office number? Or even what was the point of Martin tracking down Laura only to rearrange towels in her new home?
The movie seems watchable if one keeps their brains aside and doesn’t ask too many questions. But in complete fairness, all the actors have done a wonderful job, especially Julia Roberts as the battered wife looking for a way out. The movie could have been a lot better, and in the opening it feels like it probably is. However, it just seems to miss its mark and falls a bit short of expectations.

Flatliners (Released in 1990) - Medical and sci-fi thriller - Starring Kiefer Sutherland, Julia Roberts, Kevin Bacon, William Baldwin and Oliver Platt

Directed by Joel Schumacher, Flatliners is a sci-fi thriller which was released in 1990. The movie is about 5 medical students who decide to play God, and find out what lies on the other side. Conducting dangerous experiments and trying to one up each other, the movie gradually shifts from sci-fi to drama. The 5 medical students are played by Kiefer Sutherland and his band of experimentalists, Kevin Bacon, Julia Roberts, Oliver Pratt and William Baldwin.
Being a medical student and learning to become a doctor, always leads to students trying to play God. After all, how can one look patients in the eye and tell them what to expect, if they themselves do not know. So, conducting an experiment to medically die and then be brought back to life sounds like an interesting theme for a movie.
The film begins with Nelson (Kiefer Sutherland) a medical student, toying with the concept of afterlife. Having heard stories and experiences of what the “other side” is all about, Nelson tries and successfully convinces 4 of his classmates (Randy, Joe, Dave and Rachel) to take part in an extremely tricky and tremendously dangerous experiment with him. They each decide to flatline for a minute or so to see for themselves what lies on the other side.
Nelson goes first. Once dead, he sees the image of Billy Mahoney, a child he had bullied as a kid. Within a minute, his friends resuscitate him, but he does not go into the details of what he saw. Next to flatline is Joe (William Baldwin) who has an erotic afterlife vision. After him is Dave (Kevin Bacon) who has a vision of a girl, Winnie Hicks, whom he had bullied and taunted as a child.
What follows next, are hauntings. All 3 of them are haunted by the visions they saw in the afterlife. And worse, Nelson seems to be getting cuts and bruises on himself after every episode of Billy haunting him. Joe who is supposed to be married soon is haunted by the home videos he had filmed of his sexual encounters with women. And Dave is also haunted by Winnie. He keeps seeing her everywhere, taunting him. However, none of them tell the other what exactly it is they saw.
Rachel (Julia Roberts) insists on flatlining next. And finally the group caves in and allows her. Once she flatlines, she sees her father who had committed suicide when she was younger. They barely manage to get her back, as the electricity goes out when she is under. Once she is brought back, she keeps seeing visions of her father and is haunted by them, just like the others.




Gradually they all start to open up about their visions with one another. And Dave decides it is time to make amends. He tracks down Winnie, and apologizes to her. She accepts his apology and he feels a lot better. Nelson, who had come with Dave and was waiting back in the car, sees Billy running across the road and then next to him in the car. He is attacked by Billy with a pickaxe and is saved just in time by Dave, who tells him he was having a hallucination and was actually attacking himself with the pickaxe.
Next, Joe’s fiancé turns up unexpectedly and finds out about the home videos. She leaves him and Joe feels as if a weight has been lifted off him. Finally Nelson decides to take Randy and Joe to a grave site, which turns out to be that of Billy, the kid Nelson and his friends had accidentally killed as children. Nelson leaves saying it’s time to set things right.
Meanwhile, Rachel sees her father and finds out he was addicted to heroin. He apologizes to her and she feels like she can let go. Later, they all get a phone call from Nelson saying he is going to flatline again to make things right. They rush to help him and talk him out of this fool hardy plan, but arrive nearly 9 minutes after the phone call.
On the other side Nelson replays the entire accident that took place and somehow trades places with Billy. Billy forgives him, and in a last desperate when attempt Dave tries to resuscitate Nelson, he regains consciousness.
While the basic theme of the movie starts out as something interesting, the constant death and resuscitation becomes somewhat boring. To add to this, the visions experienced by the med students convert the film from a thriller to a horror movie. All the stars have done a brilliant job, showcasing the right mix of foolhardiness, fear and intensity. But, where the movie starts out with loads of interest, it soon falls into a mundane pattern; making the viewer wish the screenplay had been just a tad bit more thrilling and suspenseful.

Steel Magnolias (Released in 1989) - Starring Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, Julia Roberts

A 1989 drama/comedy movie, Steel Magnolias is a film about 6 women who take life’s troubles and hardships in their stride. Directed by Herbert Ross, the movie is an adaptation of Robert Harling’s 1987 play of the same name. It is a woman centric movie, displaying the dainty and delicate flower like women to be tough as steel.
The star cast includes Dolly Parton, Julia Roberts, Sally Field, Shirley McLaine, Olympia Dukakis and Daryl Hannah as the 6 women who share the limelight in the movie. The inconsequential yet present male star cast includes Dylan McDermott, Sam Shepard, Tom Skerritt and Kevin J. O’Connor.
The movie opens with a beauty salon, run by Truvy Jones (played by Dolly Parton), who hired Annelle Dupuy (played by Daryl Hannah), a beauty school graduate. M’Lynn Eatenton (played by Sally Field) and her daughter Shelby (played by Julia Roberts) come into the salon to get themselves ready for Shelby’s wedding. One look at herself in the mirror, and Shelby faints. However, it is only because she has Type 1 diabetes. With a little orange juice in her system Shelby recovers. It is then that M’Lynn voices her concerns about how the doctors believe Shelby’s body will not be able to handle pregnancy.
Around afternoon, in walks Ouiser Boudreaux, (played by Shirley McLaine), who confronts Annelle about her past. Annelle confesses that her husband is a dangerous criminal and on the run from the police. Feeling sorry for her, Shelby invites her to the wedding, where Annelle lands up meeting Sam, who she later goes on to marry.




The movie skips a few months, and refocuses on these 6 women at Christmas time. M’Lynn and Shelby are back in town to celebrate Christmas and the news of Shelby’s pregnancy. However, M’Lynn is worried that this will only harm Shelby. Finally, convinced by everyone to relax and live happily in the moment, M’Lynn looks forward to Shelby’s delivery, which goes off smoothly.
However, a few months later, Shelby lands up in the hospital on account of kidney failure. M’Lynn donates one of her kidneys and Shelby’s operation is a success. Later, Annelle is to get married to Sam, who she had met at Shelby’s wedding. All the ladies plan a wedding shower for Annelle. Only Shelby can’t make it because of her job. But, after the shower, they find Shelby unconscious on her porch.
Rushed to the hospital, M’Lynn finds out that Shelby’s body rejected the kidney and Shelby has gone into a coma, from which she could never wake up. The family decides to pull Shelby off from Life Support. At Shelby’s funeral, M’Lynn breaks down and is consoled by the other women. Later, she somehow pulls herself together and focuses her energy in taking care of her grandson, Shelby’s child. A few months later, Annelle announces she is pregnant and requests M’Lynn to let her name her baby after Shelby. The movie ends with the birth of Annelle’s child on Easter.
While the male characters don’t really have much to do in the movie, the female leads shine through. This is essentially a woman’s movie, tracing their ups and downs. And even though there is a big tragedy in the end, the entire screenplay is filled with humorous one-liners, and showcases 6 women who are constantly funny and sarcastic. The tragic ending adds drama to the movie, especially with Sally Field’s heart wrenching monologue, where she feels a great injustice has been done. But, those tears soon change to laughter, with some predictable dramatic tricks.
While the movie is not super impactful, it does have its moments and overall is enjoyable. All the women perform brilliantly and that is the main focus of the movie. They all come together to create a world where they are always there for each other, through the good times and bad.

Blood Red (Released in 1989) - Starring Eric Roberts, Giancarlo Giannini, Burt Young, Lara Harris and Dennis Hopper

A 1989 period American Western drama is directed by Peter Masterson and shows the brother sister pair of Eric and Julia Roberts together on the silver screen for the first time. While the movie was shot in 1986, it was released in 1989. As a result, it was actually Julia Roberts’ first movie, even though it released after Mystic Pizza and Satisfaction. But it was also her first movie starring alongside her brother, already a well-known actor.
The movie is about a Sicilian family who migrates to America in the 1890’s and starts the winemaking business. The Sicilian family-the Collogeros and another winemaking family are shown to be living in California. They come into conflict with railroad baron, William Bradford Berrigan (Dennis Hopper), who is after their land to construct railroads through the wine plantation.
Sebastian Collogeros (Giancarlo Giannini) is the head of the Collogeros family. He has 2 children, siblings Marco (Eric Roberts) and Maria (Julia Roberts). Marco is shown to be no good, especially since he doesn’t care about the business or the dispute that has escalated between railroad owner William Bradford Berrigan and his family. He is in love with Angelica (Lara Harris), who is the daughter of a rival wine plantation owner.
However, things get heated and start to escalate into a full-fledged feud with guerilla warfare. Maria is witness to her father’s murder, who is tortured and killed in front of her by Berrigan’s thugs. Berrigan is desperate to get his hands on the land which cuts through the Collogeros’ wine plantation as also the land of some of the surrounding Sicilian families’ wine plantations.




After his father is murdered and matters reach a breaking point Marco decides to take the law into his own hands. He gathers his friends and plans a revolt against the railroad tycoon. He becomes an outlaw in the process, but manages to win over the other Sicilians from neighboring wine plantations, creating an army of sorts.
Blood Red is more a quasi-western movie with gun slingers and paybacks. While the movie may start off as a social drama which has a cause, it soon turns into a full-fledged western, complete with fistfights and gun plays. One of her first movies, Julia Roberts may have done a decent role, but there isn’t enough of a role given to her. She mostly stands around in the background looking pretty with hardly any dialogues. The script gives a stronger role to Eric Roberts, who is shown to be a one man army created to wreak havoc and get revenge for the murder of his father.
The movie did not do too well in the box office, but seems to have inspired many people to actually look up the history of railroads development in America. The only problem is its direction and focus. It starts off as a period drama broaching an important issue, but soon turns into a western solely running on revenge. As a result, the end is predictable and could have been better written. But, overall the movie is worth a watch.

Satisfaction (Released in 1988) - Drama film - Starring Justine Bateman, Julia Roberts and Liam Neeson

This 1988 drama movie is about a nearly “all-girl” band and their exploits over one summer. Satisfaction is directed by Joan Freeman, and stars Justine Bateman, Liam Neeson and Julia Roberts among other actors. The movie traces the highs and lows of one summer high school graduation of an all-girl band named The Mystery, in Baltimore.
Jennie Lee (Justine Bateman) is the lead singer for the band. After their graduation ceremony, where Jennie was Valedictorian, the band plans to head to Florida, to audition for a gig where they could perform all summer at the beach. The other members of the band include Daryle (Julia Roberts) as bass guitarist, Mooch (Trini Alvarado) as the drummer, Billie (Britta Phillips) as guitarist, and Nicky (Scott Coffey) is taken on as the keyboardist after their original keyboardist takes off on them.
But, even before they can head to Florida, the band encounters troubles in the form of Jennie’s older brother, who is their caretaker. He refuses to take them to Florida, since he does not want Jennie to change her mind about college. Then, the band’s keyboardist ditches them last minute, after which they hire Nicky. Just as they sort things out and are about to leave, Mooch goes and insults a Gang member who in turn destroys the band’s van. So Mooch with Billie’s help steal the gang member’s personal van and claim that they borrowed a friend’s van.
After all the confusion is sorted (with the gang members still looking for their van), the band heads down to Florida. They arrive late at night to the nightclub where the auditions were to take place, and fear that they might be too late. Not wanting to call it quits, they head to the private residence of the nightclub owner, Martin Falcon (Liam Neeson). However, Falcon is nowhere to be seen. Instead they run into Hamlet, Falcon’s pet dog. A little comedy ensues, and Billie gets the dog to be friends with them.
When Falcon arrives home, there is a whole load of mis-communication, with Falcon mistaking them for thieves and the band pleading him to hear them out. Confusion cleared, Falcon figures out who they are, and the band realize that the auditions are in fact the following evening. Nowhere to stay and not a lot of money, the band manages to get Falcon to let them stay at the “room” which was to be kept for the winners of the audition.




After a crown pleasing audition, they manage to land the summer gig. However, instead of a happily ever after (at least for the summer) the band is faced with more troubles, ranging from not fitting in with the beach crowd to Billie feeling outside her comfort zone and Mooch refusing to take off her black leather jacket even though it is summer on the beach! The movie finds a romantic angle as each member in the band finds someone.
Falcon introduces Jennie to some agents, who could help the band expand their base, by letting them perform across Europe. Meanwhile, relations start to tense for all the band members. The night off the audition for the European agents things go array once again. While Jennie runs off after the performance, Mooch has to face the gang members, whose car she had stolen, as they finally track her down. Eventually, with a little help from Hamlet, the gang members are chased away and the band catches up with Jennie to find out what the European agents thought of them.
Jennie implies that they liked the band, but she turned down the offer. Miscommunication ensues and the band gets upset with her for turning down such an offer. However, they find out later through Nicky that the agents in fact only wanted Jennie, and she turned them down for the band. After a summer of fun and drama, the band finally heads back home. Overall, the movie is a typical teen drama with decent music and good actors. It is interesting for one watch, but quite predictable none the less.

Mystic Pizza (Released in 1988) - A coming of age movie - Starring Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon and Lili Taylor

Released in 1988, Mystic Pizza is a coming of age film directed by Donald Pitrie. The movie follows the life of 3 girls, in the short span of time between high school and college. Even though life after high school and the movies made on it are more than a dozen, Mystic Pizza captures the spirit of anticipation and finding oneself so as to prepare for life ahead, with complete ease.
The 3 girls who steal the spotlight in the movie are 2 Portuguese-American sisters and friends, Kat and Daisy (played by Annabeth Gish and Julia Roberts), and their friend Jojo (played by Lili Taylor). The movie opens in a small resort town by the name of Mystic, Connecticut. We start the movie to find Jojo leaving her fiancé - Bill, (played by Vincent D’Onofrio) at the altar. She gets back with Bill, but is not ready to commit to marriage. Bill however puts his foot down and decides he does not believe in sex before marriage, leaving Jojo in a conundrum about whether her feelings are truly deep or just superficial.
Jojo, and Kat and Daisy are all shown to be working at a Pizzeria run by Leona, (played by Conchata Farrell) who is famous for her secret sauce. Meanwhile, Kat and Daisy may be sisters, but are quite opposite in every regard. While Kat has aspirations of perusing astronomy and will be going to Yale on a partial scholarship in the fall, Daisy is more laid back and wants to find love, through any means possible. Kat is the apple of her mother’s eye, while Daisy is more the black sheep.
Each of the girls gets their “temporary” Mr. Right only to have love blow up in their faces. While Kat maybe goal oriented, she is also naïve when it comes to love and idealism. She goes to babysit for 30 year old Tim (played by William Moses) an Anglo-American Yale graduate. Kat is mighty impressed by him, and starts to take a fancy to him, even though she knows he has a wife and child. She convinces herself that he would leave his wife.




Kat and Tim have intellectual conversations and both are impressed by the other, their idealism gradually turning to “love”, as Tim starts taking a liking to her, more because she is young and fresh, than because of her intellect. Meanwhile, Daisy is out one evening with her friends for a few drinks, when in walks Mr. Right. She is immediately attracted to his rich bad boy attitude, all the more, when he throws bulls eyes on the dart board after tequila shots. They start talking and she starts dating him.
The movie follows the 3 girls in their budding romance over a few months. Each love story turns sour, and teaches the girls a hard lesson. But, instead of making it preachy and overdramatic, the movie seems light and effortless. It does not try to force a point across but subtly keeps moving ahead. With the help of their “love interests”, the girls discover a lot about themselves and what they want in life. Rather than being a movie about girls in love, the movie is about how these girls discover their standards for love through the mistakes they make.
It is interesting to watch Annabeth Gish, Julia Roberts and Lili Taylor work their magic in the movie. Even though the setting is that of a small resort town, the characters created are smart and react in wonderfully unexpected ways. The movie is refreshing and well executed, not leaving room for clichés.  While Mystic Pizza did not do very well in the box office when it released, it started getting a sort of cult following over the years, with a lot of other movies, sitcoms and songs making references to Mystic Pizza.

Valentine's Day (Released in 2010) - Too many stars - Starring Jessica Alba, Kathy Bates, Jessica Biel, Patrick Dempsey, Ashton Kutcher, Julia Roberts

A 2010 superstar cast movie with a mind boggling array of famous actors, Valentine’s Day is a date movie, which follows the life of couples or couples-to-be on the 14th of February, in Los Angeles. The movie is directed by Gary Marshall and written by Katherine Fugate. Amongst the huge star cast, some of the names are Julia Roberts, Bradley Cooper, Ashton Kutcher, Jennifer Garner, Jessica Alba, Taylor Lautner, Taylor Swift, Jamie Foxx, Queen Latifa, George Lopez, Patrick Dempsey, Anne Hathway, Jessica Beil, Topher Grace, Eric Dane and many many others. A grand total of 21 stars have acted in this movie.
To try and explain the various stories that intermingle and run parallel to each other in the movie is probably an insurmountable task, what with all 21 actors struggling for screen space and a story outline. In short, it follows couples of all ages and at all levels of their relationships. From an old married couple played by Hector Elizondo and Shirley MacLaine, to an army officer (played by Julia Roberts) interacting with a businessman (played by Bradley Cooper), about coming home to meet the love of her life, the movie traces relations across all barriers.
It tries to tick mark all the boxes with regards to the age old formulas. Namely, a story about best friends, who do not realize they love each other, or a guy who thinks the girl who talks to him nicely actually loves him, or a girl loves a guy, only to find out that he is married, or strangers striking up a conversation, or a fifth graders first crush, or even a gay celebrity coming out of the closet. The movie tries to incorporate it all, which is not only confusing, but does not do justice to every story, as none of the stories are given enough screen time.




The characters vie for screen space. While the stories try to be different, there is just too much happening and too many actors. The movie feels like it is gridlocked, with every actor and his story jamming the other into place. With a traffic jam of famous faces, the movie feels less like a story and more like a shout out fest, where each actor that appears on screen can be called out for their token two minute presence.
There are so many actors in this movie that at least 3-4 more romantic movies and a few sitcoms could easily be made with the star cast ensemble of Valentine’s Day. Towards the end, each actors story is closed, with each couple reconciling in some way or the other for a “happy ending” on Valentine’s Day. Hiccups that have taken place along the way in many of the relationships which are showcased smooth themselves out and reunite the couples along the way.
The movie can be described as a one-time watch, as a date flick, but over and above that the movie is not only complicated to follow (what with way too many actors running about the silver screen) but also not very evolved-story and role wise. Or maybe there are just too many stories happening all at once.

Duplicity (Released in 2009) - A comedy romantic thriller - Starring Clive Owen, Julia Roberts, Tom Wilkinson, Paul Giamatti

Duplicity is a 2009 romantic spy movie, starring Julia Roberts and Clive Owen. Directed by Tony Gilroy, the movie follows two corporate spies, who are romantically involved and plot together to carry out an extremely complicated con, that too, without trusting the other completely.
Claire (played by Julia Roberts) is a CIA agent, while Ray (played by Clive Owen) is a MI6 agent. They meet for the first time in Dubai five years behind present time, and Claire steals classified documents from him, while he tries to seduce her, clearly not knowing her real identity.
Cut to present time, Equikorm and Burkett & Randle are shown to be 2 major cosmetic giants, each vying desperately to get the others secrets. Claire is working as an Equikorm agent in Burkett and Randle, and at an Equikorm event, she meets Ray who is working for Equikorm. After a little back and forth between them, it turns out that Ray is Claire’s handler, as he has taken to working with Equikorm.
The movie flashes back to three years from present day where the two meet in Rome, and Claire gives the same speech she gives in Equikorm to Ray, in present day. As it so happens, we learn that the two did not “just meet” in present day, but were planning to con the company they are working for and sell its secrets to the highest bidder. With Claire working undercover at Burkett and Randle, for Equikorm she finds out that there is some major innovation and development underway at Burkett, which Claire manages to procure by setting up another employee at Burkett and Randle.




While in Equikorm, Claire accuses Ray of stealing company secrets and when he is searched, they do find the formula on him. However, apparently, it was Claire’s plan all along and the two of them were only putting on an act. This is revealed when Ray meets Claire at the airport. There, they both have a moment of total honesty and confession, where both feel like the other one is the only person who understands them. Claire and Ray attempt to steal the multi-million dollar idea for curing baldness from Burkett and Randle and sell it to a Swiss company for $35 million. While all this is happening, the Swiss however claim that the idea being sold to them is a fake and the formula is a fraud.
The movie cuts back to ten days ago, to the Equikorm event, where Claire and Ray are in their room practicing, how the other would react at the news that Ray was Claire’s new handler at the party. The entire scene is supposedly recorded by a hidden microphone found in their hotel room. The microphone was placed there by Tully, the CEO of Burkett and Randle, who is shown to have known all along that the two - Ray and Claire are in cahoots with each other.
Another supposed member of Equikorm was actually working for Burkett and the person who allegedly was caught stealing a revolutionary new formula after being set up by Claire had never existed. All this was done solely to make Equikorm reveal that they did in fact have a revolutionary product. Till the very end, Claire and Ray feel like they are both playing each other, by having switched an actual revolutionary formula from Burkett, with a fake. However, only at the very end, when Tully sends the two a bottle of champagne do the two realize that they have been played all along.
The movie is entertaining, but when there are way too many complexities in the plot, it keeps the viewer from truly immersing themselves in it. What is fun though is the constant paring of dialogues between Claire and Ray, while maintaining a straight face and trying to read each other’s minds. The amazing technology showcased also does its bit to help make the corporate espionage all the more believable and entertaining.

Fireflies in the Garden (Released in 2008) - Family Drama - Starring Willem Dafoe, Ryan Reynolds, and Julia Roberts

A 2008 drama film starring a multitude of characters, Fireflies in the Garden is a story about 3 generations of one family and their troubles. The movie is about the strained relations between a family, and an accident, which results in each member discovering something about each other. It is a little confusing when it plays back and forth between the past and present day of each character. With Julia Roberts, Willem Dafoe, Ryan Reynolds, Emily Watson, Hayden Panettiere as some of the big names in the movie, Fireflies in the Garden is set in present day, with frequent visits to the past to unearth secrets and reconcile a family, long since estranged.
The movie starts in the present day, with Lisa (played by Julia Roberts) and Charles (played by Willem Dafoe) travelling together for Lisa’s graduation, when an accident takes place and Lisa is killed, while Charles is injured. The family comprises of Lisa and Charles’ children, Michael (played by Ryan Reynolds and Cayden Boyd as the old and young versions respectively) and daughter Ryne (played by Shannon Lucio). Then there is Lisa’s much younger sister Jane (played by Emily Watson and Hayden Panettiere as the old and young versions respectively), and her son Christopher (played by Chase Ellison) and Leslie (played by Brooklyn Proulx). There is also Michael’s ex-wife Kelly (played by Carrie Ann-Moss).




The accident with which the movie starts off is a result of Christopher, Lisa’s nephew carelessly walking across the road. So as to avoid him, Charles has to swerve the car into a tree, which results in the death of Lisa. What follows is a constant switch between present day and flash back. Charles and Michael are shown to have a strained relation, which has grown worse over time. Charles as a father has always been a domineering figure who has earned the ill will of most of the family members.
As a result, the entire family together is like a nuclear bomb about to go off. With secrets being unearthed and family members boomeranging off each other constantly, one feels like they might self-combust. But, gradually with each truth that is learned the family grows closer together, with the eventual reconciliation of Michael and his father Charles.
The movie title is taken from the Robert Frost poem of a same name, which as a child Michael claims to be his own creation so as to embarrass his father in front of his friends. However, once he grows up he writes a novel with the same name – Fireflies in the Garden, which would have been a manuscript of his and Jane’s tough childhood because of Charles. But, when in the closing scenes, Michael walks in on the whole family viewing a family video, he is surprised by the happiness it captured, and decides to scrap the manuscript, and rekindle his relationship with his father.
Even though the movie keeps moving back and forth between past and present thereby getting a little confusing and hard to follow, the overall theme is interesting and an enjoyable watch, especially once you remember which actor plays which character.

Charlie Wilson's War (Released in 2007) - About the Afghanistan war - Starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts, and Philip Seymour Hoffman

Released in 2007, Charlie Wilson’s War is a comedy drama movie directed by Mike Nikolas and based on the real life story of Congressman Charlie Wilson. With Tom Hanks playing the part of Charlie Wilson, Julia Roberts playing Joanne Herring and Phillip Seymour Hoffman playing a CIA agent by the name of Gust Avrakotos, the movie is an entertaining watch, with unforced humor depicting the life and ways of notorious womanizer Charlie Wilson.
In 1980, U.S Representative Charlie Wilson, a bachelor and Democrat from Texas, is more interested in parties, women, cocaine and having a good time in general. His office is shown to be staffed by buxom women, all tripping over each other to please him. When he is finally pulled up for Congressional misconduct, it is his long-time friend and some-times lover Joanne Herring, (whom he has a soft spot for) who convinces him to utilize his time and energy into helping the poor war riddled country of Afghanistan.
Joanne Herring, having been a TV talk show host has contacts she utilizes to arrange a meeting between the Pakistani dictator General Zia and Charlie. They arrange for Charlie to go see the refugee camps which are in horrible condition. Charlie returns to the U.S wanting to do something to help the Afghanis fight off Russia. He meets a CIA agent, Gust Avrakotos who has been hunting for a congressman to help him fund their covert cause against Russia. Having found Charlie, Gust is pleased and together they form a good pair.




Charlie discusses the issue of wanting to supply arms to Afghanistan without the other party knowing that U.S had a hand in this operation. Gust knows just the Israeli who will help them supply Soviet made anti-aircraft missiles. However, with only a meager $5 million being supplied to Afghanistan by the U.S as aid, they can’t do anything. Finally having found some purpose, Charlie starts doing what he does best, i.e. hankering about the Congress for funds. He manages to raise a billion a year to support the Afghanis.
Eventually, because of his efforts, the secret funding, the personal diplomacy and a Texas belly dancer flown to Cairo, they manage to pull off a deal to help provide arms to Afghanistan which in turns makes them able to fight off the Soviet. In history this was later known as the Reagan Doctrine, as it was under Reagan’s Presidency. The U.S had started supporting other anti-communist efforts across the globe.
However, once Charlie decides to announce measures to help a post-soviet Afghanistan with the help of Gust, he finds that there is no response from the Congress. And even though he receives a major commendation from the U.S for his support in clandestine services, he is worried that his secret efforts could in the future have terrible consequences. Which is exactly what happened – the freedom fighters became what we now know and dread as the Taliban.
While Tom Hanks may initially not seem to be the apt choice to play the maverick Charlie Wilson, you soon realize that he is completely appropriate for the role. Tom Hanks can pull off Charlie Wilson’s gradual decline of interest in parties and girls, and as someone looking to do something meaningful which he would actually be good at. With 5 Golden Globe nominations, the movie is interesting with brilliant performances by suitably cast actors.

Closer (Released in 2004) - A romantic drama - Starring Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen

Based on an award winning play of the same name, Closer is a romantic drama film directed by Mike Nicholas. The movie and the play are both modern day tragic versions of Mozart’s play Cosi fan tutte. With 4 central characters, played by Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Natalie Portman and Clive Owen, the movie received many awards and accolades including Oscar nominations and Golden Globe wins. The movie plot follows the lives of 4 adults-Dan (played by Jude Law), Alice (played by Natalie Portman), Anna (played by Julia Roberts) and Larry (played by Clive Owen). The story outlines their relationships and the fascination they feel towards the game of “love”. They do not have any real love for their respective partners, and confess to cheating not because they feel guilty of it, but more so to hurt the other person. The story follows their “attempts” at sincere truthful relationships.
The movie starts with Dan and Alice walking across each other and catching each other’s eye. Harmless flirting follows, only to result in Alice getting knocked over by a taxi right in front of Dan. He rushes to help her and from there on, begins their relationship. Alice is shown to be a stripper from New York, who has come to England to get away from that life, and Dan is a struggling British Author. Cut to a year later, Dan has now written a book based on Alice, and has begun straying from their relationship. He meets Anna who is photographing Dan and his novel for publicity. He then goes about trying to convince Anna to get involved with him; she however turns down his advances after being confronted by Alice, who breaks down in front of Anna telling her she knows what Dan has been trying to do. Anna photographs Alice’s break down, to use it in her gallery opening later.




Some more time passes and Dan, who has been trying in vain to get Anna out of his head, now pretends to be her and starts a conversation online with a man named Larry. He makes Larry turn up at a place he knows Anna to frequent. Larry and Anna meet and Anna tells Larry he has been made a fool of, and that the man who must have hooked them up is Dan. Sometime later, Larry meets Alice at Anna’s photo exhibition. He recognizes her from one of the photos on the wall and knows she is with Dan. At the same venue, Dan convinces Anna to have an affair with him, in spite of both of them already having partners. She agrees, but half way through this affair, Larry and Anna marry. What follows is Dan’s and Anna’s submission of guilt to their respective partners.
Both couples break up as a result of this. Alice goes back to being a stripper, where she meets Larry. She goes by another name and no matter how many times Larry asks Alice her real name, she maintains that it is Jane Jones. Larry by then is all for revenge, he decides to get back at Dan, by making both - his present and ex-partner cheat on him. The end is all rather confusing, with total loss on all sides with regards to love and relationships. But, it leaves us wondering how much of their real selves did the four of them give in their respective relationships? Especially at the very end, when Dan is shown to be crossing the very street he did in the beginning of the movie, and he happens to see a name on a tile  dedicated to “Alice Ayers” who had saved 3 kids at the cost of her own life. And when Alice returns to the U.S, her passport shows her name as Jane Rachel Jones.  
It helps that all 4 speak articulately and enunciate well, especially in an era where actors tend to garble their dialogues. While they may be trying their hand at love and failing miserably (what with all the deception going around their private lives), their appearances and attitudes are sharp and classy. The movie is unique in its own way, especially in today’s insincere times. What makes it unique is how the characters go about pretending to be in love and talking about love, when they truly do not know what that is. Neither do they understand each other, nor do they understand who they are or what they want.

Mona Lisa Smile (released in 2003) - Trying to empower women - Starring Julia Roberts, Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal

Directed by Mark Newell, Mona Lisa Smile is a 2003 drama film. With the title referring to Leonardo da Vinci’s work - The Mona Lisa, the movie is about a progressive feminist teacher, by the name of Katherine Ann Watson (played by Julia Roberts) who leaves behind California and Berkley to teach “History of Art” at Wellesley College in 1953.
Wellesley College is shown to be a conservative woman’s liberal arts college in Massachusetts, where women are taught one thing and one thing only, and that is, how to stand behind her husband and be the perfect wife and mother. Among the students are Betty (played by Kirsten Dunst) whose mother is a trustee and has instilled ideas in Betty, of marrying any upward bound man no matter how morally corrupt he may be. Betty through her editorials in the college newspaper tries hard to discredit Katherine and claims that because of Katherine they are all heading towards communism.
Then there is Joan (played by Julia Styles) a girl who is smart enough to be accepted into Yale Law College, but perhaps not smart enough as she chooses marrying over going to study law. Giselle (played by Maggie Gyllenhaal) is known to be sexually advanced, and rumours claim she had slept with their young Italian professor. Lastly there is Constance (played by Ginnifer Goodwin) who is only concerned about her looks.




Amongst all this is Watson’s complicated love life as well. But, the movie is not about romance and each actor’s love angles. It’s more about each of the supporting star cast trying to find a way out of the gender mould created in that era. It is about Julia Roberts as Katherine and how even though she is the main lead, she does not over shadow any of the other characters, but merely acts as a conductor of change which takes place in the other actors.
The movie is about how free spirited young girls live and behave in a closed system, which with the arrival of Roberts is challenged and thrown open gradually. The girls begin find themselves, with Roberts’ guidance and beliefs. As a viewer you can’t help but identify with Katherine Watson and her students. Not for any other reason, but the fact that they are smart brave women.
Katherine is compelling as a teacher, to the extent that eventually all the girls look up to her and consider her their role model. She forces the students to look at the world through her eyes, and converts even the most difficult of them. She has been asked to return for the next term, because her course has gained immense popularity. But, she can only return if she promises to keep with the schools rules and regulations, which among other things prohibits her from having anything more than classroom subject related conversations with the girls.
In the end, Katherine is shown to have resigned and packed her bags, to travel through Europe. An enjoyable movie all in all, with vivid descriptions of what the 1950’s and 60’s were like in such conservative schools.

Full Frontal (Released in 2002) - Disappointing movie - Starring Catherine Keener, David Duchovny, Julia Roberts, Mary McCormack, Brad Pitt

Released in 2002, Full Frontal is a blurry and confusing depiction of Hollywood. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, the movie is far from what the audience expects. Trying to explain the lives of various Hollywood characters, the movie blurs the line between what is real and what is fiction, by having shot a movie in a movie! And if that didn’t get you confused enough the narration in the movie is nothing but ambiguous.
To muddle a complicated storyline further, the movie was shot in a record time of a month, that too on digital video with a Canon XL-1s. Starring Julia Roberts, Catherine Keener, Brad Pitt, David Duchovny, Mary McCormack and David Hyde Pierce, the film feels extremely amateurish. To the extent, that the actors’ professionalism seems to be it’s only saving grace.
A skilled director, known for his talents as a cinematographer, Steven Soderbergh has created a movie which resembles a piece of work submitted by a film school student. The digital camerawork, and utilization of only naturally available light sources, has given the movie a dull, dark and blotchy quality. The plot is a film inside another film, and added to this is a documentary about the “people” in the outside film.




The movie is about a journalist (played by Julia Roberts) who interviews the famous Blaire Underwood. Then there are Lee and Carl (played by Catherine Keener and David Hyde Pierce), who play a happily married couple. In some scenes Lee seems to be deranged and unstable, while in the next scene she seems to be having serious conversations with her sister - a masseuse, over lunch. Her sister Linda (played by McCormack) goes on to meet Gus (played by David Duchovny), a producer, who hires Linda for a massage, and is willing to pay her extra to help him relieve tension!
Linda seems to be in need of money, as she has to meet a guy who she met on the Internet. Meanwhile Carl gets fired from work and heads home to find that his dog has overdosed on hash brownies. The plot could not get more bizarre even if Soderbergh tried. It’s not only impossible but also impractical to try and sort out the scenes. Where some scenes are voice over narrations in a documentary, other scenes are dramatic works of fiction.
Most of the scenes look like improvisations done by the actors, with no sense of continuation. The scenes that are slightly enjoyable, like those of McCormack, are so because of the actor’s skills and not the director’s talents. The movie in a movie scenes are shot on glossy 35mm film. This only brings out the stark contrast between the scenes, and leaves the viewer yearning for more of the lush and glossy scenes in place of the digital ones.
It a huge lesson in humility, that a man with many a success to his name and immense directorial skills, has shot and directed such a huge let down. You leave the movie feeling not only confused, but glad that it is over.