Movie Review: The Nanny Diaries

The Nanny Diaries (2007) 

Directed by Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini 

Written by Robert Pulcini, Shari Springer Berman 

Starring Scarlett Johansson, Laura Linney, Alicia Keys, Chris Evans, Paul Giamatti 

Release Date August 24th, 2007

Published August 23rd, 2007  

In an interview with the New York Times, directors Robert Pulcini and Sherry Springer Berman, the husband and wife team behind American Splendor, told a reporter that they really wanted to direct a mainstream Hollywood feature. Immediately, after reading that, I knew the movie was doomed. Trying to make a mainstream Hollywood movie is to fail at making a mainstream Hollywood movie. Immediately you link yourself to an almost untenable template of cliches and perfunctory scenes. Throw in a dull romantic subplot and you get the supremely disappointing The Nanny Diaries.

Adapted from the terrifically catty bestseller by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, two real life, former New York Nannies, The Nanny Diaries stars Scarlett Johannson as Annie. An aimless college grad, Annie longs to get into anthropology. For now she is content to get out of her mom's house. When Annie meets 4 year old Grayer (Nicholas Art) she saves him from a collision with a careless jogger and is immediately offered the opportunity to become his nanny, though she has no child care experience whatsoever.

Sensing an interesting anthropological opportunity to observe the customs and mores of upper east side New Yorkers, Annie accepts the job and finds herself in an ugly world of consumption and child neglect. Grayer's parents, who Annie refers to as Mr. & Mrs. X (Paul Giamatti and Laura Linney), treat their son as an inconvenience, as a pawn, and as a status symbol.

Grayer's plight forces Annie to commit beyond her anthropological interests and try and find ways to protect the poor kid from his awful parents. Tacked onto this plot is a romance between Annie and a guy she calls Harvard Hottie (Chris Evans), a nickname she uses to keep him at a distance, a tactic that fails miserably after just one date.

What is lacking in The Nanny Diaries is the kind of catty insights and snarky wit of the book by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus. The film adaptation is a spineless version of the book that tries to go for heart strings instead of the funny bone and misses both quite badly. In their attempt to make a mainstream Hollywood comedy, directors Sherry Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini dull their sharp edges to appeal to a broader audience.

Someone should have told them that you can't please everyone no matter how bland and inoffensive you might be. Bland and inoffensive is certainly a good description of The Nanny Diaries which, though the parents played by Laura Linney and Paul Giamatti are truly awful people, the film refuses to judge them too harshly. Linney is almost sympathetic in her sadness, while Giamatti is off-screen too often for us to judge him much at all. Mr. X is a surface bastard with seemingly no motivation for his bad behavior.

The one element of The Nanny Diaries that works is Scarlett Johannson who plays the role that is given to her to the best of her abilities. Though hampered by a role that should be a little smarter, funnier and more biting and insightful, Johannson is, at the very least, charismatic and that goes a long way to improving an otherwise dismal movie. It's a shame that Johannson's romance with Chris Evans' Harvard Hottie never really sparks. The romantic subplot exists only to break the monotony of the dreary family plot and for that we are thankful. Unfortunately, the distractions are brief and Johansson and Evans never find that elusive romantic connection.

The Nanny Diaries lacks the spine to really tear into these awful parents and instead is understanding to a ludicrous extent. The actions of these parents is akin to emotional abuse and yet by the end we are to believe that young Grayer has hopes for a bright happy future without his nanny for protection. The film needed to be edgier, more judgmental, with the kind of catty insider perspective that made the book a beach read phenomenon.

Spineless and forgettable, The Nanny Diaries is a real disappointment. When independent directors like Sherry Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini move into the realm of the mainstream the hope is they won't bend to mainstream conventions but will bend convention to there artistic will. That doesn't happen in The Nanny Diaries and the result is a movie that tries to please all audiences and ends up pleasing few.

Movie Review: The New World

The New World (2005) 

Directed by Terence Malick 

Written by Terence Malick 

Starring Q'orianka Kilcher, Colin Farrell, Christian Bale, Christopher Plummer, Wes Studi 

Release Date December 25th, 2005

Published Decemeber 23rd, 2005 

A Terence Malick movie is an event. Not just because that, in his thirty plus year career, he has only directed four features. It's because each of those four pictures have been accomplished by a master director. That doesn't mean that Malick or his work is universally beloved. Only that his work is undeniably the work of a director who's heart and soul goes into every film.

All of Malick's features have the divisive of power of great art that brings out strong emotions in those that love it and those that do not. Malick's latest feature may be the ultimate example of his polarizing work. The New World has split the critics and moviegoers more than any of his previous films. The New World examines the founding of America in a stylized epic fashion that utilizes its environment as a character as much as its actors. It's one extraordinary experiment.

By 1609, The New World had long been discovered by Europe, but it was yet to be colonized. A ship carrying the very first Americans, as they would someday come to be called, arrived with all of the grandeur and arrogance that has come to define the American character in the nearly 400 years since. Great English ships with huge sails soaring arrive in what would become Jamestown to establish the first colony.

Led by Captain Newport (Christopher Plummer) the settlers are aware of the indigenous people, or naturals as they call them, that await them in the new world, and Newport sets the tone early on, urging his people to engage the naturals peacefully. The first encounter between these two tribes is a fascinatingly Malick experience. Mostly wordless, they meet in a field of high weeds with the soundtrack bereft of all but the sounds of nature. The naturals greet these alien newcomers with wary fascination; the settlers with edgy excitement bordering on murderous fear.

After this initial encounter, the naturals watch as these newcomers begin building their makeshift forts and homes. There is more interaction but the language and cultural barriers lead often to violent misunderstandings. Eventually it is decided that in order to make peace with the naturals, a group of settlers must go forth to their encampment and attempt to establish trade, while Newport sails back to England to gather more supplies.

Captain John Smith (Colin Farrell), who arrived in the new world as a captive, is chosen to lead this expedition because of his military training. The trip initially becomes a violent encounter as the naturals defend their camp from this outside intruder. Smith is beaten and captured. Taken to Chief Powhaton (August Schellenberg) he is sentenced to die until the chief's daughter, nameless in the film though history calls her Pocahontas (Q'orianka Kilcher), throws herself across Smith's body and begs for mercy. The Chief acquiesces to his daughter and Smith is allowed to live. Staying among the naturals, Smith and Pocahontas begin a unique and transfixing love affair.

The story of The New World continues beyond Smith and Pocahontas' love affair and basically bypasses the story of the founding of America to tell the story of this extraordinary young girl who braved the frontiers of her family, her tribe and the unknown dangers of the of Americans and their English home. When John Smith chooses to disappear, Pocahontas meets John Rolfe (Christian Bale) and eventually makes her way to England in scenes that are just as powerful as the initial scenes in set in America.

The New World is as much a beautiful travelogue vision of early America and England as it is a history lesson or a love story. All of these diverse elements work because each is part of the same symphony, all being conducted by Terence Malick. His mastery of visuals is unquestioned, and his legend only grows with the wondrous landscapes of The New World. Terence Malick is underrated is in his storytelling which, in this case, mixes perfectly a realistic representation of American history with a powerful and deeply moving love story.

15-year-old Q'Orianka Kilcher is the centerpiece of The New World and is all the more amazing for the fact that this is one epic film that she holds together brilliantly. Malick's camera seeks her at every moment and bathes in her radiant spirit. It is not difficult to see why Malick cast this beautiful teenager, she has that innocent star quality and assuredness that can only be ascribed to the naivete of youth. She is never nervous about being the center of an epic movie because she doesn't appear to realize that she should be.

Be forewarned that The New World is not for every audience. Fans of Malick, like myself, walked into The New World expecting to fall in love with it and were not disappointed. On the other hand, non-fans may find Malick's love of scenery and luxuriant pacing off-putting. The film is long, at nearly three hours, something else that might test the patience of non-Malick fans.

However, if you consider yourself a film fan, I cannot imagine not loving The New World. Malick's painterly directorial strokes, Q'Orianka Kilcher's enthralling performance and the wide historical scope of the film are just the kind of ambitious film-making exploits that film buffs love. Malick is an auteur, a visionary whose genius makes even his indulgent flaws endearing.

A work of wondrous imagination and skill, The New World is Terence Malick at the height of his powers. Not for all audiences but for an audience willing to indulge a masterful director's vision, The New World is a more than rewarding experience. If you can't tell, I love this movie!

Movie Review: The Next Three Days

The Next Three Days (2010) 

Directed by Paul Haggis 

Written by Paul Haggis 

Starring Russell Crowe, Elizabeth Banks, Brian Dennehy, Olivia Wilde, Liam Neeson 

Release Date November 19th, 2010 

Published November 18th, 2010 

Paul Haggis loves a story that examines fate and chance and the seeming randomness of life. Bringing order to the chaos of life was part of what made his “Crash” such a fascinating drama. It was messy in the ways it brought characters together, crashing them together emotionally and sometimes physically, yet there was fate seeming to shine down on each character and reveal that there may have been no other way for these things to happen.

”Crash” is a remarkable film filled with powerful performances and emotions that deepen with repeated viewings. It's the opposite experience of Mr. Haggis's latest film, “The Next Three Days.” Ostensibly a prison break thriller about a husband trying to save the life of his accused murderer wife by busting her out of jail, “The Next Three Days” is, in reality, a gutless exercise in thriller machinations and not the kind of emotional, thoughtful examination of fate that Haggis would like you to think it is. 

Russell Crowe stars in “The Next Three Days” as Community College English teacher John Brennen. John is a great dad to 3 year old Lucas and a loving husband to Lara (Elizabeth Banks), his workaholic wife who, when we meet her first at a dinner with John's brother and overly flirty fiancée, has just left a rather confrontational day at the office. Lara and her boss were seen to have a wild screaming match just before each left for the day. The next day, as John is getting his son breakfast and mom is leaving for work the police burst through the door and Lara is arrested, charged with murder. Lara's boss was found dead in the parking lot and Lara's car was seen leaving the scene and her fingerprints are on the murder weapon.

Three years later, John and Lara have exhausted her appeals. Lara is going to spend the rest of her life in prison unless John does something drastic. He could appeal to the Supreme Court but without new evidence that won't help. His only real option, once Lara has attempted suicide, is to break her out of prison and get her and Lucas out of the country. Oh, but how will an average, pudgy, College professor plan a prison break?

My plot description is limited to portions of the first act. The second act, featuring a stellar cameo by Liam Neeson, is where “The Next Three Days” moves from sad family drama to attempted thriller. Where Haggis's talent for examining fate through the actions of characters in extreme emotional distress, The Next Three Days becomes a boilerplate thriller with very little interest in examining the motivations of the characters or allowing them depth beyond the function they perform in the hackneyed thriller plot. 

This is not the fault of Russell Crowe who pulls off quite an acting challenge in “The Next Three Days.” Crowe first has to convince us that he is not an action hero and then turn John Brennen into enough of an average action hero that he can do the things needed to break Lara out of prison. Given Crowe's movie born reputation as a tough guy whose characters could easily be capable of attempting a prison break it is remarkable to see Crowe show such vulnerability and then morph that vulnerability into desperate necessity.

If only the rest of “The Next Three Days” had Crowe's determination. Sadly, director Paul Haggis lacks his star's nerve. Surrounding Crowe's tour de force performance is a soporific movie that cannot bear the ambiguity needed to really give the thriller stuff a charge. Never for a moment are you allowed to see John as anything but heroic nor are you allowed to wonder too much about Lara's guilt or innocence.

A more daring film would allow John to do things less than heroic in order to achieve his goal. A more daring film might have asked some more daring questions about Lara's guilt or innocence. Instead we get a scene at the movie's end that removes all doubt and lets the characters and the audience off the hook. Rather than pushing us to question what we would do in a similar situation Paul Haggis keeps his questions superficial and easy to answer.

“Crash” could be dismissed as superficial but Haggis introduced an idea behind the heavy emotions on display; the idea of fate and that of the randomness of life a destiny, for good or for ill, could emerge. There are few, if any, challenging ideas behind the facile thrills of “The Next Three Days” and the film suffers mightily for it.

In the end, “The Next Three Days” has the compromised feel of a very Hollywood production, the kind of market tested drivel that is meant to leave audiences reassured that there values haven’t been challenged. Were it not for Mr. Crowe, I would call it boring, but with him and his determined performance, “The Next Three Days” is merely a failure. 

Movie Review: The Night Listener

The Night Listener (2006) 

Directed by Patrick Sterner 

Written by Armistead Maupin, Terry Anderson, Patrick Sterner 

Starring Robin Williams, Toni Collette, Bobby Cannavale, Joe Morton, Rory Culkin, Sandra Oh 

Release Date August 4th, 2006 

Published August 3rd, 2006 

In 2002 author Armistead Maupin, best known for the New York portrait Tales of the City, began a correspondence with a fellow author. This was, however, no respected colleague of Maupin's but rather, a teenager whose book was a chronicle of abuse and redemption. The author and the kid shared letters, then phone calls and eventually Maupin was promising the possibility of cash and gifts to help the kid and his adopted mother in their time of need.

Eventually however, cracks in the teens story began to show. Something began to nag at Maupin, who, along with his editor, began to suspect that this extraordinary teenage author did not exist. The hoax was later revealed to have taken in not only Mr. Maupin but a number of journalists and talk show host Keith Olbermann.

The story of the hoax became the source of a unique new novel from Mr. Maupin called The Night Listener, in which Maupin morphed the story of this child con-man, revealed to be woman in her thirties, into a thriller involving a national radio host and a hoax involving a teenage writer and his creeptastic caretaker. The Night Listener is now a major motion picture starring Robin Williams as radio host Gabriel Noone. Known for his storytelling, most often taken from his own life as a gay man in New York City, Gabriel has a national following that happens to include a young cancer patient and author named Pete Logand.

Through his book editor, played by the terrific Joe Morton, Gabriel begins a correspondence with Pete that begins with letters, progresses to long detailed phone conversations, and eventually the promise of money to help with the treatment of Pete's cancer. As in Armistead Maupin's real life experience, the cracks in the story begin to slowly emerge. Questioning Gabriel's intense commitment to his young unseen friend, Jess (Bobby Cannavale), Gabriel's ex-boyfriend, begins asking important questions that Gabriel had overlooked.

With his faith shaken by these questions and pressure to send help to the seemingly dying boy, Gabriel travels to where he believes the boy lives with his adopted mother Donna (Toni Collette), and what he finds begins the unfolding of a very compelling mystery thriller that never seems to go the way you think it will. Patrick Stettner directs The Night Listener outside the typical beats of a thriller. His interest is more in the story than in shocking audiences with bloody twists and turns. Allowing his story and characters to invent the tension, Stettner crafts a strong atmosphere and let's the thriller aspects of the film grow around the story organically.

Robin Williams delivers his best dramatic performance since his Oscar winning role in Good Will Hunting in The Night Listener. His Gabriel is a loving but wounded older man in just the perfect position to be taken in by this hopeful, worshipful young boy. Williams makes all of Gabriel's actions in the film feel natural and believable, never overplaying the shock or dismay that Gabriel encounters throughout the picture. 

Sadly, if there is a weak link in The Night Listener, it is Toni Collette's Donna who is something of a creepy cartoon in the film. Near the end, as the plot reveals itself, Collette has a scene that redeems much of her performance in just a few lines but overall, a dialing down of her persona throughout the movie would have helped the picture immensely.  There are little problems with The Night Listener, but thanks to the performance of Robin Williams and the sure handed direction of Patrick Sterner, in his second feature following 2001's The Business of Strangers, The Night Listener is an easy recommendation for anyone who enjoys a well acted, compelling mystery based loosely on a true story. 

Movie Review: The Nines

The Nines (2007) 

Directed by John August 

Written by John August 

Starring Ryan Reynolds, Hope Davis, Melissa McCarthy, Elle Fanning 

Release Date August 31st, 2007

Published November 14th, 2007 

Gary (Ryan Reynolds) is an actor on a big time cop show and he has just hit rock bottom. After his girlfriend left him he decided to burn all of her things in the back yard. He ended up burning down his house. While the house burned Gary hit the streets and bought some crack and shared it with a prostitute in a fleabag hotel. When the cops caught up to him he was on the phone with 911 operators asking why he didn't have a belly button. This being Hollywood however, Gary's criminal meltdown was more like a minor PR problem. Sentenced to 30 days of home arrest, Gary's publicist Margaret (Melissa McCarthy) has set him up in the house of a friend of hers, a writer, out of town writing a pilot.

Soon Gary strikes up a friendship with his next door neighbor, Sarah (Hope Davis), a bored housewife and fan of Gary's. She listens to his odd ramblings about the house being haunted and eventually she even seems to believe him and offers evidence of a conspiracy to confine him to the haunted house. Is she just as crazy as Gary or is there more going on? Meanwhile, there is the writer whose house Gary is borrowing. His name is Gavin, also played by Reynolds, and he has just signed on for a reality TV show that documents the behind the scenes happenings on the new show he hopes to put on the fall schedule. 

The show stars Melissa McCarthy as a mother to an oddly prescient, mute child played by Elle Fanning. Gavin's liason at the network is Susan (Hope Davis). Is this an alternate reality? It must be if Gary is Gavin and Margaret is Melissa and so on but then how is the actor aware of the writers reality as if it were happening at the same time and how does Gavin know that some actor was staying in his home while he was gone.

It gets weirder folks as one more reality emerges, that of the characters on Gavin's TV show where Gabriel is the husband of Mary, McCarthy's character. This time Sara/Susan is Sierra some force of evil who attempts to lead Gabriel away from his family. Or is the real dimension and what Sierra tells Gabriel about humans and his real self are true? Bizarre, cryptic and oddly fashioned, The Nines never plays out as you think it might and that is what makes it so fascinating. Unpredictable in the strangest ways, this film from writer-director John August, who wrote the multi-narrative feature Go for director Doug Liman, is a serious mind-fuck that will keep you guessing throughout.

Ryan Reynolds is better known as a comic actor but when he wants to he can bring it dramatically. He definitely brings it in The Nines delivering three distinct and captivating characters. Melissa McCarthy has the unique challenge of playing herself for a segment and brings the challenges of a working actress in Hollywood to light in just the briefest of roles. She is less interesting in the other two realities but effective enough to maintain the film's strange charms. As for Hope Davis, you keep waiting to get more from her and she recedes. There is no doubt that this is Ryan Reynolds' vehicle but a little more for Davis and The Nines could go from recommendable to must see.

As it is The Nines is a strangely fascinating sci fi trip. Ryan Reynolds is one of the more engaging young actors working today and he proves it with not one but three excellent performances in The Nines.

Movie Review: The Notebook

The Notebook (2004) 

Directed by Nick Cassavetes 

Written by Jeremy Leven 

Starring Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams, James Garner, Gena Rowlands, James Marsden, Joan Allen 

Release Date June 25th, 2004 

Published June 24th, 2004 

There is a terrific line in the movie High Fidelity where John Cusack sums up his short-term romance with Lily Taylor. "You have to be of a certain disposition to believe you’re going to be alone for the rest of your life at 26. We were of that disposition.” I too am of that disposition. At 28 years old I am single, really unattached single for the first time in a very long while. I have had steady relationships since I was 14 year old. Don't worry I'm going somewhere with this.

I get to thinking this way every time I see a romantic movie. What if I had my great love already and lost it? What if great love only exists in the movies? If that is true then The Notebook is a wonderful example of the big love I wish existed in real life. A collection of great actors comes together with a director slowly coming of age to create, not a perfect movie, but a romantic and memorable movie.

The film stars Ryan Gosling as Noah, a poor boy working in a lumber yard who one summer night meets the woman of his dreams. Her name is Allie (Rachel McAdams), the daughter of rich parents who has moved to the small southern town of Seabrook only for the summer. Allie does not share Noah's immediate attraction but eventually his charm breaks through and the two begin a torrid summer love affair.

Parallel to this is the story of an old couple living in a nursing home. James Garner and Gena Rowlands are the old couple. While he is in good shape, she is suffering from severe dementia. He kindly comforts her by reading to her from a notebook the story of Noah and Allie's love affair. You will have to see the film for the rest of their story.

Naturally, with Allie coming from a rich family and having a disapproving mother (Joan Allen), their affair is destined to be short lived. When Allie returns home very late from a date with Noah, her mother forces her to return to their home in Charlotte. She leaves a message for Noah to write to her but sadly, his letters are intercepted by her mother. He goes on to fight in World War II while she heads to college and a few years later is engaged to another man played by James Marsden. Noah and Allie reunite once more but again you will have to see the film to see if there’s is a happy ending.

Or you could read the book by Nicholas Sparks, the famed romance writer whose credits also include the sappy A Walk To Remember and the even sappier Message In A Bottle. Indeed Sparks has a tendency to lay it on pretty thick but The Notebook somehow is not as bogged down as the previous novels. Maybe it's better writers adapting the book to the screen but whatever the case, The Notebook is far better than either of Sparks’ other works.

Maybe it's just the amazing cast. Gena Rowlands and James Garner are fantastic. The heartbreaking chemistry of these two masterful actors should land them both Oscar nominations in the supporting categories. Rowlands especially is magnificent. I don't cry at movies very often, after years of working as a critic, but I was very moved by Ms. Rowlands’ work in this film. It helps that her son Nick Cassevetes' camera absolutely loves her.

Ryan Gosling has been a star on the rise for a few years now and with his performance here he has guaranteed his stardom. Gosling has the presence and chops of a true movie star. Watch the way he commands attention in every scene without having to force it. It's honestly like watching a young Paul Newman or maybe James Dean. Gosling has presence, gravitas, and charisma to go with his remarkable good looks. 

The films only obvious weak point is, unfortunately, Rachel McAdams who sadly can't find her footing for most of the film. It's probably her pairing with Gosling. Though they have okay chemistry, McAdams is clearly intimidated and Gosling is so good that his performance exposes her flaws. She may yet have stardom in her future, she was good in her comedic turn in Mean Girls earlier this year, this however is not her coming out party as a great actress.

The films real revelation may be director Nick Cassavetes who, after a series of almost great films, finally finds himself with The Notebook. The material is a little sappy at times, overly sentimental, even a little precious but Cassavetes is clearly in command and wrenches the film away from too much melodrama. Cassavetes smartly relies on his terrific actors to carry the day and they make this a memorable experience.

The Notebook is a wonderfully romantic film. It's a film that got to my emotions like few films are able to do. I always get a little broody and contemplative after a movie like this and it leads to hours of old photos and pop songs. I believe there is big love out there in real life, you just have to try and find it or let it find you. Even if you lose it, it's still big. No matter what, big love will always be on the big screen, a comforting reminder of a dream you have for yourself.

Movie Review: The Notorious Bettie Page

The Notorious Bettie Paige (2005) 

Directed by Mary Harron 

Written by Mary Herron, Guinevere Turner 

Starring Gretchen Mol, Chris Bauer, Lili Taylor, Jared Harris 

Release Date April 14th, 2006 

Published April 13th, 2006 

The life of 50's pin up queen Bettie Page was bustling and tumultuous and full of controversy. To watch the movie of Page's life, The Notorious Bettie Page, from director Mary Harron and writer Guin Turner; Page herself was entirely oblivious to her place in the world. The film features an exemplary performance from actress Gretchen Mol who evokes Page in both looks and spirit, but is so soft hearted and soft headed it's impossible to believe.

Graduating from High School in the 1940's Bettie Mae Page (Gretchen Mol) was a noted member of the debate team who missed out on class valedictorian by the slimmest of margins. After marrying her high school sweetheart and attending college to become a teacher, Bettie tired of life in Tennessee. Finding her husband to be an abusive brute and teaching far too dull, Bettie found herself in New York City where a chance encounter on the beach with an amateur photographer lead her life in an extraordinary direction.

Posing for photo clubs where she willingly posed nude for strangers; Bettie met photographer Paula Claw (Lily Taylor) and her enterprising husband Irving (Chris Bauer). The Claw's had a thriving mail order business that shipped fetish photos to collectors all around the country. Soon Bettie was wearing black leather bustiers, high heel leather boots, and being trussed in various positions for photos that would make her a fetishist icon.

On a trip to Florida Bettie met another photographer, Bunny Yeager (Sarah paulson), who would further the legend of Bettie Page with photos that eventually landed in the pages of a very young Playboy magazine. All the while Bettie remains oblivious of her celebrity and of the somewhat unsavory of the photos she was posing for.

A scene between Bettie and a photographer, John Willie (Jared Harris), in which Willie asks Bettie how god might feel about her fetish and nude photos threatens to give Bettie a moment of depth. Unfortunately her answer is the kind of answer you might expect of a naive, southern, christian girl and not the queen of the fetish photo world. Bettie's cluelessness as portrayed in The Notorious Bettie Page, true or not to the real Bettie Page, comes off so unbelievable that it could actually have been played for laughs, it's not.

This is not the result of Gretchen Mol's performance which is vibrant and sexy. This is a real career shifter for Mol who, up until now, has been an eye candy substitute for directors unable to land a Kirsten Dunst or Scarlett Johannson. Mol has, in films like The Thirteenth Floor, Rounders and  The Shape of Things, been a beautiful cipher. She failed at every turn to inhabit her characters beyond her good looks. That all changes in The Notorious Bettie Page where Mol combines sex appeal and warmth to create a fun loving, if not all that deep character. That's alright as depth is not what is asked for.

Director Mary Harron and writer Guin Turner are clearly big fans of Bettie Page. However, the hero worship leads them to basically just recreate moments in Bettie's life without coloring in the character with any kind of inner life. Could the real Bettie Page been nearly class valedictorian and a good christian and yet still be entirely clueless of the controversy her photos were creating? I find that impossible to believe as it is portrayed in The Notorious Bettie Page. 

The film is framed by scenes of Bettie waiting to testify at Senator Estes Kefauver's (David Straithairn in a cameo) juvenile delinquency hearings. It is alleged that Bettie became aware of her controversial status at these hearings and that she may have decided to give up modeling because of them. However, as posited by the movie, the hearings were almost meaningless. Bettie waited for hours and never testified. The Claw's lost their business because of the hearings and that as much as anything ended Bettie's career.

The impact of the hearings is almost nothing beyond demonstrating the foolishness of Kefauver and his ilk. A bolder dramatic decision might have followed the alleged story that Bettie took seriously what she heard in those hearings and gave up her career. Instead the film follows Bettie to her re-christening at a church and her somehow continued ignorance to her place in the world.

There is still much for the Bettie Page cult to love about The Notorious Bettie Page. Gretchen Mol gives wonderful life to the icon of Bettie Page and the filmmakers delight in recreating Bettie's most famous poses. The film is crazy sexy and yet manages to capture one photographers perfect assessment of Bettie, that even when nude, she isn't really nude. She somehow remains innocent even as she is trussed and spanked. That, no doubt is why she was and is so popular. Page remains a wondrous dichotomy.

Gretchen Mol delivers a career transforming performance in The Notorious Bettie Page. The way she brings to life Bettie Page is fabulous and fun but also entirely uncomplicated and without depth. That is not Mol's fault. Director Mary Harron and writer Guin Turner show often that they are far more interested in hero worship than they are in telling the real life story of Bettie Page.

Fun but not very interesting The Notorious Bettie Page will satisfy Bettie Page fans and fetishists, those  interested in watching recreations of her most favored poses. However, for those who want to know and understand the legend, The Notorious Bettie Page is a disappointment. The film appears to have no interest in developing Bettie Page, examining her inner life, or crafting her into a satisfying whole human being. The icon is well represented in place of the person.