The Tourist

The Tourist follows the story of Frank and Elise. Elise (Angelina Jolie) is a mysterious woman followed doggedly by the police and Frank (Johnny Depp) is an erratic, fool-in-love tourist that Elis picks from a crowd. The story is mysterious, roundabout and certainly clever.

The movie opens with the police watching Elis during her morning routine at a cafe. And I really truly can't give you any more than that without giving away much of the story and you really truly must go into it without knowing more than what I've just given you.

My only complaint about this 103 minute movie is that there is only so much they can do with the plot line and so it will occasionally seem a bit lagging. Not enough that I was counting minutes, but certainly noticeable. Other than that, the movie is intriguing and beguiling and certainly worth seeing.

You could wait for the DVD and not lose anything to the story, however, but it's not a waste of money by any stretch if you do see it in theaters. Pick a rainy weekend afternoon or as an outing to break up the stress of this lovely holiday season and catch it in theaters.

To be perfectly honest, I feel like I cannot give you any more of a review than that without ruining the movie for you. Good luck and enjoy!

Morning Glory

Morning Glory was unexpected. What I expected what a cute, tidy rom-com that would have me and my fellow movie-goers warm and fuzzy at the end. What I got was just as good...perhaps better.

Morning Glory, starring a nifty headline of big names — Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton, Rachel McAdams — follows the story of Becky Fuller (McAdams) a spunky, determined 28-year-old in the television business whose job is her life. She's beat down when she's unexpectedly fired from her job, and her oh-so-(not)- supportive mother tells her, "It was cute when you were twelve, inspiring when you were twenty, but now, at twenty-eight, it's just plain embarrassing. Give up now before it becomes just plain sad."

But Becky refuses to give up, even when making a fool of herself and manages to claw her way onto a show through sheer tenacity. Things spiral from there, she rises to the occasion, yadda yadda yadda.

It's a story of success and of finding the perfect work-life balance, a totally different storyline than the expected "my life is complete now that I've found a man." She does find a man, and a damned good one at that considering, but after the initial bloom, the relationship is shunted to the sidelines of the script and the story focuses on Becky's interactions with a cantankerous, over-the-hill news anchor (Ford). Ford plays his part to a tee as the once-illustrious, now egomaniac Mike Pomeroy ("I will not say 'fluffy.'").

Bottom line: Harrison Ford's still got it (and Diane Keaton is his perfect foil in this movie...two superstars matching egos), the story's not another syrupy-sweet rom-com but has enough spunk to tickle your enjoyment, and while the plotline waffles a bit and stays in the shallow end of the pool rather than braving the deep end, it's a cute movie to catch — and I'd even pay theater prices for it. Just maybe not an evening show, shoot for the matinee.

Yours,
The Movie-ist