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I Heart Huckabees

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So last weekend I saw I Heart Huckabees (Rated R, 106 minutes) staring an ensemble cast that includes Jason Schwartzman, Dustin Hoffman, Lily Tomlin, Jude Law, and (Marky) Mark Wahlberg and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Schwartzman has been one of my favorite actors since his debut in Rushmore a movie by one of my favorite writer/directors Wes Anderson, and he does Writer/Director David O. Russell (Three Kings) well as Albert Markovski, a young environmental activist hoping to save some marshlands from untimely demise. He experiences three coincidences which he can find no explanation for and seeks out the assistance of existential detectives Bernard and Vivian (Hoffman and Tomlin) who have two entirely different approaches in how they do their job. As the detectives shadow Albert to see how he spends his day we are introduced to Brad (Law) then anti-Albert that works as an up and coming executive for Huckabees (think Target) a store that sells everything, wants to seem as if they are trying to improve their environmental image with the help of Albert by underwriting his Open Space Coalition. Brad uses his charming smile and smooth talking to convince everyone that Albert’s poems are no match for a party, when it comes to saving the marsh. Later we meet Tommy (Whalberg) who is Albert’s anchor and becomes his counterpart throughout the movie as they deal with Brad.

One of my favorite characters was Bernard a quirky out there doctor like character who teaches Albert about how everything in the world is interconnected like a white bed sheet, a tree, the marsh, Albert, all part of same thing. Him and long with his wife Vivian, believe that everything is connected and have made it their professional to explain what it all means. Whereas later in the movie we discover Caterine Vauban (Isabelle Huppert) who contradicts everything they believe to be true with her insistence of a somewhat nihilistic approach that nothing is connected. She takes Albert and Tommy under her wing after they are put off by the detectives’ insistence that Brad (who also has hired the detectives) isn’t undermining Albert.

This movie is all over the place and I’m not even sure if I give it justice when I try to do a simple plot description. Most the parts are well acted and Dawn (Naomi Watts) is a pleasure to see throughout the movie as the voice of Huckabees. It was well worth the price of admission.

$7 out of $9.

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DanGarion
Product Manager, Internet Superstar, and all around good guy.

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Today while I was sick home I watched Garden State (Rated R, 109 minutes) for the first time since I caught it in the movie theaters. Every so often there is a movie that really clicks with me, Swingers, High Fidelity, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and now Garden State has been added to that list. Writer/Director Zach Braff does a great job in his debut film in which he also plays the lead role of Andrew Largeman. Andrew is a struggling actor living in Los Angeles where he recieves word from his father that his mother has died. He returns home to New Jersey for the first time in 10 years to attend the funeral but also discovers himself for the first time and begins to feel. During his trip he runs into some old friends from high school and also meets a girl Sam, played by Natalie Portman. His trip to New Jersey is not only for the funeral but he decides to take a vacation from the medication he has been taking in some form or another since he was ten (Lithium), that were prescribed by his psychiatrist father.

With Sam and his new found ability to feel, Andrew wakes up and discovers himself in ways he didn’t know he could. Natalie Portman is brilliant in this movie playing a free spirited girl who seems to know all about life. The movie is supported by a strong soundtrack which helps convey the mood throughout the film.

This is a brilliant work. The type of work someone could only create before they really hit it big. Independent film at it’s finest which is why I give it a $9 out of $9.