Rob Marshall – Christian Sauvé

Valentine’s Day (2010)

ByChristian Sauvé 2016-04-032017-03-09 Movie Review

(Netflix Streaming, April 2016) I am an absurdly forgiving reviewer when it comes to romantic comedies, so when I report some amount of enjoyment from Valentine’s Day, don’t necessarily assume that I’m in my right mind. A large ensemble comedy set in Los Angeles on Valentine’s Day, this film crams a dozen 10-minute short stories together, with tenuous links between the various strands of the story. You can watch the film just for the pleasure of seeing two dozen name actors having fun in a frothy feel-good romantic film, spouting various bon mots about love and occasionally hamming it up. (Jamie Foxx gets a turn signing at the piano, for instance.) Or you can watch it for the thrill of seeing couples meeting up, breaking up and making up. Bargain-level symbolism abound, but there is something faintly clever in making much of the story revolve around a flower shop on February 14. There are a few cute touches for those who consider Hollywood actors part of their extended family (Anne Hathaway plays a phone-sex operator; Taylor Swift makes her big-screen debut; Shirley McClaine appears twice in the same frame in roles decades removed) and the film zips easily through the various areas of Los Angeles. Director Rob Marshall keeps every plate spinning with ease, and Valentine’s Day unspools easily as long as we’re ready to play along. In terms of ensemble romance, it’s nowhere near the much-superior Love Actually, but it’s sweet and sympathetic enough to be forgiven. Your opinion is likely to vary depending on your tolerance for such movies. Also see (or not) the similar New Year’s Eve and the upcoming Mother’s Day.

Movie Review

Memoirs Of A Geisha (2005)

ByChristian Sauvé 2006-02-122023-03-14 Movie Review

(In theaters, February 2006) Saying “I wasn’t bored!” is the very definition of faint praise, but expectations ran low for this historical drama seemingly more concerned with cinematography and costumes than intrigue or suspense. The trailer itself just looked like a bunch of fancy images. And yet director Rob Marshall should be given more credit: He doesn’t lose any time in making this story of female servitude become interesting: Power plays, historical re-creations and a good sense of plotting all make this a far more interesting tale than it first appears. Ziyi Zhang is fine as the lead character, but it’s Michelle Yeoh who steals the show as her mentor. The film is hardly perfect, of course: The third act feels superfluous (though the sense of dread in seeing all of those American faces suddenly invading the screen is very effective) and the film often gets caught up in its own aesthetics. Then there’s the very real and uncomfortable idea that this film is all about a form of female exploitation, and that’s difficult to forgive even with the historical context. But even though the film may not arouse more than minor admiration for its lush set design and costumes, it’s not a bitter pill to swallow. There are certainly worse films on the Oscar-nominated list.