Buzzsaw: "Community" Review

This semester I am writing for Buzzsaw, a student-run magazine on campus, in addition to The Ithacan. I've learned a lot of the newspaper, such as working on a deadline and the broader points of AP style, but Buzzsaw is great because I get to show much more of my own style in what I write. Here's my first piece, a review of the new Joel McHale-headlined NBC comedy Community.

Community Holds Promise of Many More Laughs to Come

By buzzsawmag-import | September 27th, 2009 | Family, Ministry of Cool

By Anne Gould Northgraves

Joel McHale is a much funnier, taller, and generally less toolish version of Ryan Seacrest. But until recently, the multi-job-juggling– and the concurrent success– had belonged to the American Idol/E! News/Radio Host. However, with McHale’s high profile headlining NBC’s new comedy Community, about a misfit group of community college students, the comedian is poised to rival Seacrest’s domination.

McHale, and the show in general, is off to a relatively good start. He stars as Jeff, a fast-talking lawyer going back to school to get a legitimate diploma (when asked if he has a degree from Columbia, Jeff replies, “And now I have to get one from America”). And while it is a treat to see a character so unabashedly devious, Jeff treads a fine line between garnering corny sympathy and being too much of a haughty cad to care about. Whether McHale and the writers maintain the balance or veer too far in either direction remains to be seen.

The rest of the cast, while archetypal, complement each other nicely. Filling out the Spanish study group, we have a prim perfectionist with a drug-addicted past (Alison Brie), a mom looking to improve her job prospects (Yvette Nicole Brown), a “dumb” jock feeling societal pressures (Donald Glover), a geek of mixed Middle Eastern descent and a bad case of verbal diarrhea (Danny Pudi), a high school drop-out as idiosyncratic as she is attractive (Gillian Jacobs), and a pompous old man as much interested in spreading his (supposed) wealth of knowledge as he is in learning new things (Chevy Chase).

Pudi, Glover, and Chase are particularly hilarious. In the race for my favorite line of the night, Chase’s pitch-perfect delivery of the line “I am a prominent business leader, and a highly sough-after dinner guest” just beats Glover’s clueless, “You seem pretty smart, you’ve got a sport coat.”

This is only a small sample of the vast amounts of dialogue that fly by with alarming speed, and it is the highlight of a slightly uneven script. Any pilot has to navigate mounds of explication necessary to establish the various characters and general tone of the show. Doing so without any hiccups is almost impossible.

Community throws out information so fast, that the show is occasionally bogged down by it. Even so, the amount of great exchanges, zingers, and witticisms is so high that appreciating them all definitely requires repeat viewings.

Everything that is good about the show is certainly due to its excellent pedigree. Community’s creator and executive producer, Dan Harmon, also co-created the absurdity-filled The Sarah Silverman Program, while executive producers/directors/brothers Anthony and Joe Russo were directors of Arrested Development. The later series had a definite influence in the quick pace and rapid-fire dialogue of Community, and if the genius of Arrested is any indication, that bodes incredibly well for the freshman series.

Given the past performance of those involved, the potential the premiere episode points to and the next episode’s addition of The Hangover scene-stealer Ken Jeong as Spanish teacher Senor Chang, Community definitely passes.

Community is on NBC Thursday nights at 9:30. Catch up with by watching the premiere on nbc.com or hulu.com.

The Ithacan: "The Informant!" Review

First review of the semester. This was a decent film, and I give it a better review than I actually felt about the film, because from an objective point of view it was very good, it just did not tickle my particular funny bone.

Damon fills out role as informant

By Anne Gould Northgraves Staff Writer | September 24, 2009

Describing “The Informant!” is as complex as the plot. And just as each character in the film has a different view of the complications and events, every viewer is going to have a different opinion on the movie’s merits ­— which is part of its charm.

The plot appears simple at first: Mark Whitacre (Matt Damon), a pudgy executive at a corn processing company, becomes an FBI informant when he learns of a global corn-lysine price-fixing scheme. But Mark is a compulsive liar with delusions of grandeur. Unable to untangle his own lies, Mark eventually finds himself on trial for criminal activities. While Kurt Eichenwald’s book treats this as a thrilling tale of corporate espionage, director Steven Soderbergh takes a much different view. Imagine drawing from Soderbergh’s own body of work: The winks and nods of humor from the “Ocean’s” series combined with the serious corporate fraud of “Erin Brockovich,” but concerning corn by-products instead of pollution.

“The Informant!,” based on the nonfiction book of the same name (minus the exclamation point), exposes the absurdity of the situation to the audience even as the characters are dead serious about the multiple frauds going on. And the types of fraud differ greatly: corporate espionage, price-fixing, embezzlement and lying to the FBI, to name a few. But the many twists could potentially confuse the audience. Even someone who enjoys the general tone of the film will have a difficult time keeping track of the truth beneath the lies, in part because more lies are always being revealed.

Under the convoluted twists of deception and fabrication is an aura of absurdity created by Mark’s deceit. Soderbergh, also the cinematographer on the film, puts a yellow-orange tint on most of the movie — mirroring Mark’s excited personality and colorful inner dialogue. The tone and bright background age the feel of the film, giving it a more authentic ’90s vibe.

Even more than the overall color palette, the music of “The Informant!” is vital to establishing the mischievous tones in each scene. Prolific composer Marvin Hamlisch, the mind behind Broadway’s “A Chorus Line,” penned the upbeat score and garners widespread laughs from the entire audience. It was made to contrast scenes of great ruin and success on the part of Damon and the other actors.

Though the entire ensemble excels in the subtlety required to make the situations real, the film belongs to the inspired performance by Damon. He is hardly recognizable, having gained roughly 30 pounds for the role and hiding under a bad wig and an unfortunate moustache. These physical changes help effectively establish Mark’s cluelessness, from checking on his secret-recording equipment during a meeting to wanting to remain the president of a company he is trying to take down. Wardrobe aside, the biggest insight into Mark’s, and Damon’s, greatest triumph in the film is the off-topic, stream-of-consciousness narration he provides.

Almost never pertinent to the subject discussed during the scene, Mark’s disconnected thought process provides both humor and a window into his world, where in the end everything has a purpose.

“The Informant!’s” complex structure and combative stories make it a difficult film to gain interest in. However, with a basic understanding of the plot, an open mind to let the story develop and a sense of humor, “The Informant!” definitely deserves to be seen.

“The Informant!” was written by Scott Z. Burns and directed by Steven Soderbergh.

The Ithacan: "Australia" Review

Now, this review I wrote right after Thanksgiving break brought up a lot of dissenting opinions among my friends. Australia was directed by Baz Luhrmann, whose few films are incredibly polarizing. There are those that L. O. V. E. the sumptuous splendor and tragedy of Moulin Rouge, though many others find it too frenzied. And William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet can be seen as the freshest take on any of Shakespeare's plays or a needless adulteration of a classic. 

I, for one, love his work. And though Australia has it's flaws, it was aiming to be a sweeping, romantic and joyous epic of a previous age. Which it succeeded at. Perhaps the reason the film did not do well is a testament to how much films have changed, and how the public's general expectations have been streamlined. For more, just see below. 

Epic Aussie film breaks genre boundaries

By Anne Gould Northgraves Staff Writer | December 4th, 2008

Expectant moviegoers have been anticipating the release of “Australia” for months, and the large-scale, romantic and exotic epic did not let them down. It is epic with a capital “E.”

The film is anything but genre-specific. With the cattle driving and beautifully shot desert scenery in most of the movie, it is part Western. The passionate relationship between Nicole Kidman’s stuffy Brit Lady Ashley and Hugh Jackman’s gruff Aussie Drover is classic romance fodder, and moments of physical and verbal humor create flashes of comedy.

 The social prejudices and Japanese Invasion of 1930s northern Australia add historical perspective. A large portion of the story revolves around the appalling racist policies of ruling whites against Aborigines and mixed-race children, providing social commentary.

“Australia” is reported to be the largest and most expensive film made in the titular country, costing upward of $150 million. Aussie director and co-writer Baz Luhrmann — best known for tragic romance spectacles “Moulin Rouge” (2001) and “Romeo + Juliet” (1996) — did not appear to be the ideal person to tackle “Australia.” But his experience crafting genre-bending films that fit bygone times was vital to making “Australia” work.

As in “Moulin Rouge,” the story starts off with a few too many characters and plot points presented all at once. Understanding all the information is admittedly difficult at first because of thick Australian accents. Also there are moments when quick editing, panning shots and physical humor akin to the style of “Moulin Rouge” and “Romeo + Juliet” are out of place. But overall the film flows well, and the audience can become truly invested in the story and the characters’ journeys. Luhrmann’s experience directing dance and action spectacles allows him to craft dramatic sequences in the expansive setting.

The writers also deserve a great deal of credit for the success of “Australia.” If not handled delicately, the story could have been predictable and unable to hold the viewer’s interest for the film’s 165 minutes. But “Australia” deftly handles the required plot points. While Kidman’s and Jackman’s characters progress through an archetypal relationship, from their initial loathing to being united to achieve a common goal to love, it is wholly believable. Though romantic films usually have an uplifting ending, given Luhrmann’s predilection for tragic endings, the conclusion does not feel forced or predictable.

The final piece of the epic puzzle that makes “Australia” a successfully grand picture is the actors’ skills. Though Kidman is Australian, she convincingly portrays a stuck-up British aristocrat. Her character is more than a caricature — Lady Ashley has good reasoning and motivation for her actions. Jackman is multidimensional as Drover, with his own motivations and convincing character arc. His emotional performance toward the end of the film when Drover comes to a startling realization is particularly moving. But while David Wenham is convincing as the evil Neil Fletcher, a far cry from his martyr-like role in “The Lord of the Rings,” Fletcher remains a one-note character and could have benefited from more development.

“Australia” reaches for epic proportions and hits the mark. Luhrmann transcends his customary style while keeping the film entertaining and surprising. The result is a film that recalls the grand spectacle of features like “Ben-Hur” in setting and story, while focusing on individual characters’ struggle through the landscape.

 

“Australia” was written by Baz Luhrmann, Stuart Beattie, Ronald Harwood and Richard Flanagan, and directed by Luhrmann. It received three and a half out of four stars.

The Ithacan: "The Wild Party" Review

Seeing as I haven't posted one of my Ithacan pieces for a while, I thought I'd do that. This was my review of IC's production of "The Wild Party." I didn't like the show a ton, but since I couldn't critique the play itself, according to my editors, I had to respond to the cast and crew's work. Which was pretty good, so this became a much more positive article than I had intended. 

Cast energy boosts an already ‘Wild Party’

By Anne Gould Northgraves Staff Writer | November 13th, 2008

Ithaca College Theater’s performance of “The Wild Party,” based on the off-Broadway musical by Andrew Lippa, truly lives up to its name. At Friday’s show, cast members threw energy into every number, and superb choreography carried some of the numbers that felt out of place.

A deep and dark (though periodically hard to follow) story underlies the frothy front of the musical, molding an enjoyable show into one that effectively sends a message about morality.

The opening number begins with lines from the 1928 poem by Joseph Moncure March on which the musical is based, “Queenie was a blonde and her age stood still / And she danced twice a day in vaudeville.” This vague yet affecting statement sets the tone for the next two hours. The musical numbers shift between vaudevillian acts of energy and ecstasy in “What a Party” and more introspective pieces like “Maybe I Like it This Way.”

The ensemble is perfectly tuned into the kind of energy required of each number, packing each piece with either emotional or physical energy. There are occasions, particularly during the first act, when numbers centering on ancillary characters — such as the lesbian Madame True, played by junior Emily Brazee — interrupt the central narrative. Though expertly performed and entertaining, the songs seem a bit out of place. The numbers in the second act take on a darker tone and focus on the central story of volatile and intertwined relationships between the unhappily married Burrs (junior Eric Morris) and Queenie (senior Meredith Beck), and new couple Black (junior Michael Haller) and Kate (senior Catherine Lena Stephani).

Impeccable acting compensates for some fine points of the story that do not hold up. While it is understandable that the abused Queenie seeks revenge upon Burrs, why she hesitates taking up with the immediately smitten Black is not clear. More mysterious is why Queenie’s old friend Kate — the antithesis of Queenie in every aspect, right down to their color palettes, with Queenie dressed in white and Kate in black — goes after Burrs. Since these relationships set the show’s ultimately tragic events into motion, additional explanation would have been more fitting.  

But the actors perform admirably with the given material, recalling the atmosphere and mannerisms of 1920s characters. Beck is all wide-eyed faux waif with a gleam of malicious plotting behind her virginal exterior, her voice warbling like a real vaudeville showgirl. Morris fully transforms into the unlikable, violent Burrs, personifying the nadir of male chauvinism. Yet it is Stephani that is particularly impressive as Kate. She infuses her character’s every movement with the frenzied energy of a middle-aged woman trying to hold onto her youth and her desires without thinking of the possible consequences. Her liveliness makes each of her featured moments high points of “The Wild Party.”

The two-tiered set brings the cast’s energetic performances to life. Candles placed throughout Burrs and Queenie’s loft provide soft, low lighting — perfect for the show’s serious moments. The use of the orchestra pit for the bathroom, where a key point of the plot takes place, effectively highlights the importance of the events that transpire there.

Transformative acting and use of the performance space come together under the skilled direction of Norm Johnson, associate professor of theater arts. His solid guidance ensures the difficult subject matter of “The Wild Party” doesn’t lose its poignancy.

 “The Wild Party” is showing tomorrow at 8 p.m. and Saturday at 2 and 8 p.m. in Hoerner Theatre. Tickets can be purchased at the ticket office in the lobby of Dillingham Center.

The Ithacan: "The Secret Life of Bees" Review

I went all by my lonesome to see The Secret Life of Bees and review it. Though pretty cliche, it was still very heartwarming. Sometimes you need a film like that, and in that case I highly recommend Bees. Plus, Paul Bettany is pretty unrecognizable. I don't know why that fascinated me so, but it did. I mean, he convincingly portrayed a self-flagellating albino monk. 

Coming-of-age film is sugarcoated yet believable

By Anne Gould Northgraves Contributing Writer | October 30th, 2008

Touching acting balances clichéd dialogue in the recent film version of the best-selling novel, “The Secret Life of Bees,” so much so that it reminds viewers of the true damage that can occur while growing up under trying circumstances. The film follows a young girl searching for the truth about her mother as she seeks out answers in the places she least expected.
The film’s multilayered story line is evidence of the film’s history as a novel. The startling revelation in the first few minutes — that young southerner Lily Owens, portrayed by the talented and moving Dakota Fanning, accidentally killed her mother as a toddler — immediately establishes the main character’s tortured nature. It is typical for characters in emotionally charged coming-of-age films to have traumatic pasts. But Lily’s guilt and pain from the loss of her mother and the abuse of her father are presented with matter-of-fact palpability, rather than unnecessary gobs of misery traditionally used in tearjerker films to garner sympathy from the audience. 
A great deal of the credit for the appealingly unpredictable nature of the film goes to the star-studded, supremely talented cast. Jennifer Hudson is moving as Rosaleen Daise, a worker on Lily’s father’s farm, and Queen Latifah is powerful as August Boatwright, one of the women who takes Lily in when she runs away. A veteran actress at only 14 years old, Fanning’s tender performance is balanced by the stubborn strength played by Hudson, still a Hollywood newcomer. 
Oscar nominee Latifah exudes a tangible calm for most of the film, but her extreme sorrow during a horrific plot twist develops her character’s dimension. Her even delivery ensures the sentimental dialogue is easy to swallow. Fellow Oscar nominee Sophie Okonedo makes the most of her small role as the overly sensitive May Boatwright. Her character’s hysterics are understandable rather than laughable. 
The film’s true revelation is singer-songwriter Alicia Keys, in her third film role as the headstrong June Boatwright. Previously untested in dramatic fair, Keys’ June is a paradox. She treats her boyfriend Neil (Nate Parker) tenderly, yet coldly refuses to marry him. She devotedly prays with her sisters, yet does not always have faith in August’s decisions. Though the Boatwright sisters are much older in the novel, fans of the written work will not be disappointed by the quality of the performances. 
The supporting cast delivers as well. British actor Paul Bettany is particularly effective and nearly unrecognizable as Lily’s angry and abusive father, T. Ray. Though Bettany has little screen time other than periodic, irrelevant scenes that throw off the film’s pace, the character is not one-dimensional. T. Ray has his own demons and pain that shed light on his questionable actions, making his decisions justifiable. 
The film’s subtle style is like a golden layer of honey coating and sweetening the whole film. The southern locals are filmed under the guidance of writer and director Gina Prince-Bythewood and director of photography Rogier Stoffers, with strong attention to color and light. The sunlit scenes, full of colors that pop, like the Pepto-Bismol pink of the Boatwright house, appropriately showcase Lily’s increasing comfort in the Boatwright home. 
Though “The Secret Life of Bees” features the occasionally sappy dialogue and pacing issues of similar feel-good films, there is much more to the film than that. In the capable hands of a talented cast, a strong guiding story and beautiful cinematography, the film makes for a heartwarming movie-going experience. 
 
“The Secret Life of Bees” was written and directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood.

The Ithacan: "The Women" Review

Here's another one of my pieces from this semester. It appeared in the same issue as the Raiders: The Adaptation front did, so that was an exciting week. 

Stereotypes trump the truths of ‘The Women’

Mediocrity overtook a film with Hollywood alumnae and serious potential

By Anne Gould Northgraves Contributing Writer | September 18th, 2008

It is rare enough for a high-profile Hollywood film to be directed by a woman. It is rarer still for that same film to be written by a woman. And it is unheard of for such a film to feature a cast made up entirely of women. Yet the hat trick that is “The Women,” the recently released update of a 1930s classic about four friends, does not quite deliver, given the big names involved and the time it took to return to the big screen.

Take, for example, what should have been star Meg Ryan’s triumphant return to Hollywood glory. The role of protagonist Mary Haines is a mature and complex one. Mary is a woman who has to pick up the pieces of her life after she learns of her husband’s affair and deals with a friend’s equally painful betrayal. The role has potential for real depth, and it is plain Ryan is trying to evoke real pathos with every crinkle of her brow.

But overall Ryan portrays Mary as little more than the slightly quirky and pained romantic comedy character Ryan played to death in the 1990s. Somehow Ryan’s voice has gotten higher pitched since her last stint in the spotlight, which makes even Mary’s most meaningful comments feel almost too tartly sweet to be true. Her overly voluminous hair, clearly meant to emphasize her harried state, ends up looking strikingly similar to a certain Ms. Bradshaw of “Sex and the City.”

Mary’s best friend Sylvia is an equally well-conceived character: a successful, tough-as-nails magazine editor who is also dealing with self-doubt and questions of loyalty. But what makes Sylvia a fuller character than Mary is the masterful performance by Annette Bening. She is as capable of portraying serene and supreme confidence when declaring, “This is my face. Deal with it,” as she is able to contort that face into a taut and pained mask when hiding potentially friendship-breaking secrets.

While writer and director Diane English (who wrote the ’90s sitcom “Murphy Brown”) adapted Mary and Sylvia into modern and complex enough characters, the same cannot be said for the supporting roles of Alex Fischer (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Edie Cohen (Debra Messing), a pair of purely two-dimensional characters. Though hints of personality and character keep the audience interested, hardly any screen time is devoted to the duo, making it clear Alex and Edie are mere fillers.

Pinkett Smith scowls and growls her way through the peripheral role of Alex. The character, a writer who has been coasting for six years off the success of her first novel, has the potential for incredible drama. However, Alex is merely the little slice of sass in the group, both in terms of her tell-it-like-it-is attitude and the sexual and racial diversity she brings to the group.

Messing, meanwhile, does the best she can as the perpetual, and perpetually happy, mom of the group of friends. Her radiance provides a necessary levity in the film, but Edie lacks sufficient back story and emotional connections to the other three friends. If only Edie’s complexity was revealed before the last three minutes of the film, then the hilarious and climactic final scene — the only shining

moment for both Messing and Pinkett Smith — would not have felt overloaded.

A greater disservice has been done to Mary’s nemesis, Eva Mendes’ scheming, gold-digging character, Crystal Allen. One would hope every character in a film about complex, real women would have some measure of depth. But all Crystal provides is a tired stereotype — a scheming, money-obsessed cutthroat — and nothing more.

“The Women” could have featured fewer women and still expressed the truth of the story. All the high-profile names additionally flung about in the cast — Candice Bergen, Bette Midler, Cloris Leachman and Carrie Fisher — feel more like a ploy to entice ticket-buyers than a full cast of characters.

“The Women” is a promising story with some genuinely funny and truthful moments.

Unfortunately that aspect does not completely redeem the overabundance of meaningless, two-dimensional characters.

 

“The Women” was written and directed by Diane English.