Patricia Rae
Occupation
Actor
The Big Wedding Review
By Rich Cline
Good
An all-star cast very nearly goes down with the ship as filmmaker Justin Zackham (The Bucket List) indulges in relentlessly farcical silliness. Thankfully the actors play it relatively straight, injecting moments of dark emotion and sharp wit in between the corny wackiness. But the script is more interested in humiliating its characters than finding any genuine humour.
The eponymous nuptials are between Alejandro and Missy (Barnes and Seyfried), who haplessly watch their families implode as the big day approaches. Alejandro's adoptive dad Don (De Niro) and his long-time girlfriend Bebe (Sarandon) are planning the event, but Alejandro's deeply religious birth-mother (Rae) is coming from Colombia, so he asks his dad to pretend to still be married to his ex-wife Ellie (Keaton). Meanwhile, Alejandro's sister Lyla (Heigl) is having her own marriage crisis, while his brother Jared (Grace) can't keep his libido under control.
As the preparations continue, the plot gets increasingly tangled. But it also becomes strangely ingrown, as if these people have never met anyone outside their small circle of family and friends. Past secrets are revealed and dark peccadillos come to light, leading to a series of manic confrontations. Through it all, the film remains blandly amusing, although its rather extreme moments never quite escalate to Meet the Parents hilarity. Thankfully they avoid the strained goofiness of Death at a Funeral.
Continue reading: The Big Wedding Review
Detachment Trailer
Henry Barthes is a highly recommended substitute teacher, a compliment he doesn't really accept. His latest job is subbing at an inner city high school for a month, where exam grades are slipping; the pupils are unruly and the head teacher is under fire for the decline in standards there.
Continue: Detachment Trailer
Maria Full Of Grace Review
Extraordinary
If I've ever seen a movie that better produced riveting drama on a low budget with no exaggeration of character or CGI effects, I can't remember it. This is a story whose fascination level rises with each new danger that a desperate young girl faces, and you may come out of it thinking you've experienced some of her agony.
Maria Alvarez (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is a 17-year old in rural Colombia and the breadwinner for her family, a situation that becomes more than she can bear when she realizes she is pregnant. When her condition causes her to leave her job's production line one too many times, her boss fires her. Boyfriend Juan (Wilson Guerrero) is little comfort and she rejects his proposal to marry out of need or obligation.
Continue reading: Maria Full Of Grace Review