Movie Review Hyde Park on the Hudson

Hyde Park on the Hudson (2012) 

Directed by Roger Mitchell 

Written by Richard Nelson

Starring Bill Murray, Laura Linney 

Release Date August 31st, 2012 

Published November 10th, 2012 

"Hyde Park on Hudson" is a strange movie. On the surface, it appears to be a prim and proper period piece centered on an American President. In reality, it is a trim and tawdry, Jerry Springer-esque expose on the secret affair between a President and his cousin. Jerry Springer-esque is a slight overstatement though this version of FDR and his sordid private life would make a fitting guest for a trashy talk show.

There is no arguing with the notion that President Franklin Delano Roosevelt cheated on his wife Eleanor with many different women. There is also no denying that a good movie can be made about one or all of these affairs. The problem is "Hyde Park on Hudson" picks the absolute worst instance of this adultery to focus on. It's about the time that FDR got a handjob from his cousin and pursued sleeping with her. UGHHH!!!! 

Uncomfortable and Icky

Laura Linney is the ostensible star of "Hyde Park on Hudson" as President FDR's fifth cousin Daisy (If you think her being a fifth cousin is an excuse, re-evaluate your life and don't spend time with your extended family, eww). When the President, played by Bill Murray, is at his home away from home, known as Hyde Park on Hudson, he finds distraction and comfort in the company of Daisy with whom he can, for a moment, forget the problems of the free world and simply be Franklin.

That sounds lovely until 'that scene' happens. Our illusions about the stately, period picture decorum of "Hyde Park on Hudson" are shattered early on in Daisy and FDR's first outing together. Having driven out to the middle of a field and dismissed the secret service, FDR slowly encourages Daisy into a... sexual encounter. She... gives the President a handy. I already mentioned that but it calls for repeating, the President encouraged his cousin into giving him a handjob and someone thought that should be in a movie starring Bill Murrary and Laura Linney. 

What a Waste

The film never recovers from this scene. even as the screenwriting attempts to make excuses about the distance between Daisy and FDR on the family tree. Every scene after Daisy and FDR's indelicate encounter in the field is a forced attempt at classing things up. The film's supposed focus is the first ever visit of the British Royal Family to the home of an American President but we're never allowed the opportunity to invest in that plot because there is no recovering from the President getting tossed off by a member of his family. 

As I said earlier, there is a good movie to be made about the messy private life of an American President but this is not it. "Hyde Park on Hudson" is a shabby, tawdry, and still somehow, often quite dull picture that wastes the talents of two of my favorite performers, Bill Murray and Laura Linney. It says something terrible about "Hyde Park on Hudson" that two so talented actors as Murray and Linney cannot improve the movie enough to make it palatable.

Movie Review Morning Glory

Morning Glory (2010) 

Directed by Roger Mitchell 

Written by Aline Brosh McKenna 

Starring Rachel McAdams, Harrison Ford, Diane Keaton, Patrick Wilson, Jeff Goldblum 

Release Date November 10th, 2010 

Published November 9th, 2010

Can one woman cure the ills of a last place network morning show through the sheer force of her adorable-ness? One might also ask can an actress cure the ills of a troubled dramatic comedy through that same adorable-ness? The answer to both questions, based on the movie “Morning Glory,” is a shocking, yes.

Rachel McAdams is so vibrant, energetic and adorable that she wills this otherwise rickety dramatic comedy; the definition of that oh so vague, made up term ‘dramedy,’ into becoming a sweet, endearing romance of woman and her work oh and yeah there is this pretty guy in there too.

Rachel McAdams stars in “Morning Glory” as Becky, an adorable whirlwind of a TV news producer who, when we meet her, is on the verge of a promotion. Or so she thought. Turns out she was being fired due to budget cuts. As with all plucky movie heroines however this is merely a speed bump on the way to the job she needs.

After a comically fraught job search in which our peppy wannabe big city gal irritates the entire news infrastructure by reading her resume, she finally gets an interview. The job is with the 4th place network in America, IBS, as executive producer of the lowest rated morning show on network TV.

Her new boss, Jeff Goldblum, in all his Goldblum-y glory, has zero confidence that she can turn the show around but she can’t make it any worse. Or can she? On her first day Becky fires the co-anchor; a sadly under-used Ty Burrell from TV’s Modern Family, despite his irreconcilable contract and leaves the show minus its required male co-host.

Ahh, but our heroine has a plan; on the IBS payroll is a news legend that due to his multi-million dollar contract has to work or not get paid. Mike Pomeroy (Harrison Ford) was demoted from Nightly News Anchor because of his bad attitude and slight drinking problem. Nevertheless, he’s a big name with a long track record that would be a perfect opposite to bubbly co-host Colleen Peck (Diane Keaton).

Unfortunately for Becky even if he has to by contract, Mike Pomeroy doesn’t want to do morning news. He refuses cooking segments, entertainment interviews and basically anything that your average morning news shows do. Mike longs for the days of actual journalism but as Becky correctly points out, the battle between news and ‘info-tainment’ was fought long ago and Mike’s side lost.

Can the plucky upstart wear down the cantankerous superstar while rescuing the floundering show and corralling a new boyfriend, a fellow news producer played in perfect bland handsomeness by Patrick Wilson? Admittedly, the stakes aren’t all that high but star Rachel McAdams makes each feel like an urgent concern.

This is the Rachel McAdams many thought was coming when she starred as the lead ‘Mean Girl’ opposite Lindsey Lohan or when she battled Cillian Murphy in the innovative thriller “Red Eye.” McAdams has wandered in the woods the past few years starring in junk like “The Time Traveler’s Wife” and seeming to crush her potential with poor choices.

Apparently, McAdams was just waiting for writer Aline Brosh McKenna and Roger Mitchell to give her something she could really play. Play it she does in “Morning Glory” amping up the kind of adorable that would shame puppies and kitties and yet remaining sexy instead of merely cute and substantial rather than just perky. No matter how delightfully scattered Becky is, McAdams infuses her with bright ingenuity and can-do capability.

The rest of “Morning Glory” is riddled with trouble. Harrison Ford is the least likely network news star since Howard Beale and even more cantankerous. Sure, Ford projects a stately air but with his gritted teeth growl it’s hard to believe that even news junkies took to his Mike Pomeroy, no matter if he was on a battlefield in Kosovo or opposite the President.

Diane Keaton plays cute and clueless a la Kathie Lee Gifford quite well but don’t do not consider her character’s back story for too long as it reveals inconsistencies the story cannot explain. Patrick Wilson’s handsome love interest guy is less problematic; he’s merely under-written and called upon to make uncomfortable attitude turns simply because of plot requirements. But other than that, he’s fine.

“Morning Glory” is riddled with all sorts of minor potholes, including a rather arrogant attitude about morning news shows, but Rachel McAdams overcomes all of those troubles by making the movie all about how plucky, adorable, sexy and smart her character is. She is so winning that we can forgive all of the problems around her which are almost meta when you consider the troubles piled up around both character and actress.

Not kidding at all dear reader, Rachel McAdams deserves an Oscar nomination for “Morning Glory.” Any actress who only through the awesome appeal of her performance can turn around an entire movie at least deserves to be in the Best Actress conversation and McAdams does that in “Morning Glory.”

Movie Review: Changing Lanes

Changing Lanes (2002) 

Directed by Roger Mitchell 

Written by Michael Tolkin 

Starring Ben Affleck, Samuel L Jackson, Toni Collette, Sidney Pollack, William Hurt, Amanda Peet 

Release Date April 12th, 2002 

Published April 11th, 2002 

Each and every one of us has been there. We've all done it. All of us have done something that to this day we still regret. Be it cheating, lying or stealing, often all three at the same time. Ethically there is no justification for these actions but at the time it was what suited our needs and we were able to rationalize it to the point where we can live with the consequences. It is such a moral quandary that is at the heart of the gripping drama Changing Lanes.

Lanes stars Ben Affleck as high-powered attorney Gavin Banek who, while on his way to court to file some very important papers, has a minor fender bender with a man named Doyle Gipson played by Samuel L. Jackson. Gipson is also on his way to court, he is trying to save his marriage by buying a home and therefore convincing his wife that he has changed. You see Gipson is a recovering alcoholic. Fate is a funny thing and Gavin, in a hurry, tries to pay Doyle off to forget what happened. Gipson refuses, so Banek takes off and leaves Doyle on the side of the road. When Doyle asks for a ride Gavin replies "better luck next time". What Gavin doesn't know is that he has lost his precious file and Doyle has it.

This setup could have lead to a series of action movie clichés like gunplay and fistfights and vows of revenge, but director Roger Michell and writers Michael Tolkin and Chap Taylor choose instead to make a more grounded film. They allow the characters bruised egos and bravado to carry the story through its series of plausible arcs.

Affleck has never been better. I thought I might have a hard time taking him seriously, as by reputation he doesn't take himself seriously. And for the first half of the film I was having a hard time believing him. However through a series of well written scenes and strong supporting actors (Toni Collette as Gavin's colleague and former lover, Amanda Peet as Gavin's wife and director Sydney Pollock as his boss), Affleck proves he can carry a drama as well as he can do comedy.

Sam Jackson is easy to take for granted. Myself, I walk into his movies and assume he'll be great and he hasn't proved me wrong yet. In Changing Lanes, Jackson plays a man who desperately wants to be a good person but can't resist trouble. As William Hurt as Doyle's AA sponsor says, Doyle is addicted to chaos.

Changing Lanes shows the thin line between right and wrong and does so with honesty and a clear vision. Right and wrong are merely choices with morals and ethics as the lowest common denominator. The film never allows anyone to become a villain. Each character is able to explain the motivation behind their seemingly unethical acts and they do so in ways that are actually very understandable. 

Amanda Peet's character is most effective at getting this point across, explaining her motivations that are on the surface sad and depressing but the underlying reason is a plausible decision she has made to be comfortable instead of happy. In the end there is very little black and white just a lot of gray. We would all like to do the right thing all the time and expect others to do so as well, but we don't live in a fairy tale.

Changing Lanes is no fairy tale, it is an honest observation of humanity, wart and all. Few films have the courage to do what this film does. It avoids formula and actually attempts to say something. For those of you who are just looking for a popcorn movie you may think this to be a little heavy but trust me, the film as a whole is as entertaining as it's message is resonant.