Koala’s Movie Corner - Enchanted, Atonement

Recently checked out two pretty different movies that arrived in my mailbox via the magic of Netflix.

Enchanted - Loved it. Cute, funny, and disarmingly entertaining for 100 minutes. Whether it be a 21st century New York vermin-featuring homage to the working songs of Snow White and Cinderella, or a role reversal of the “white knight” being rescued by his damsel, I really enjoyed the send-ups and shout-outs to many of the old Disney classics that fill this movie to bursting. I thought Amy Adams was terrific in it. She’s come a long from hanging with Jim Halpert and planning on being Lost with Legally Blonde or the Bridges of Madison County. She took a role that could easily have devolved into a cheesy mess and injected it with believability and warmth. I could easily see her as one of the nominees for Best Actress. After all, you can only have so much of women playing ugly (see Charlize Theron), playing men (see Hilary Swank, Felicity Huffman), or being old (see Judi Dench, etc). Overall, I rate this movie 5 out of 5 eucalyptus leaves. Buy it on Blu-Ray, watch it, love it.

Atonement - A very interesting movie, well shot, but ultimately unsatisfying. Is it a love story, a meditation about the difficulties children have understanding adult situations, a war movie, or a showcase about the rippling devastation of one lie? Saoirse Ronan? Maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t get what the big fuss was about. Did she make a bigger impact than other Best Supporting Actress nominees like Ruby Dee in American Gangster? Yes, but I was expecting to be blown away, and came away with maybe only a few hairs out of place on my AZN fro. But the movie did prompt a discussion between my wife and I about the jealousy, confusion, and assumptions that can be made when children barely into their teens are faced with very adult situations. Overall, worth a rental if Blockbuster is out of Enchanted.  3 out of 5 eucalyptus leaves.