spotifeyeball

Wow, I just cannot believe all the accolades this movie is getting. The only reason why it must be getting all these awards is that is is a movie about Hollywood, and Hollywood loves itself very much. The acting is vapid, the dancing mediocre, the songs forgettable, the singing abysmal. Everyone sounds like a bad choir audition-- weak, breathy, without focus or "ring". No legit Broadway-style singing technique. I cannot imagine what real Broadway singers and dancers must be thinking about this travesty.

I think it must be an exercise in navel-gazing, as the awards bodies see themselves in these two characters. Haven't they all struggled to get auditions? Haven't they all had screen tests? Haven't they all tried to "make it" in Hollywood? of course they have. The awards givers like looking at themselves in the mirror. Personally I do not like what they see. Don't bother wasting your energy, or you will quit halfway through, as I did. 0 out of 10.

As a classical singer and voice teacher I can only commend Ms. Streep for her work as a very bad classical singer who thinks she is a very good classical singer. It is difficult enough to sing those arias well, but amazingly difficult to purposely sing them poorly. Streep manages to mimic the unfortunate sounds of Mrs. Foster Jenkins, down to the off-kilter semi-tones and shrill production. Go have a listen to Mrs. Foster Jenkins on YouTube and you will see what a job Ms. Streep had of it, and how well she did in achieving an excellent imitation of the unique sound this woman possessed.

I might also mention that Hugh Grant is at his handsomest and most endearing in his role. I could look at him all day!

Brava Meryl Streep, you deserve and Oscar for what you did in this movie! 10 out of 10.

If there was only the scene of Baby Jane singing and dancing to her child song as she did in her youth, Ms. Davis would have been nominated for the Oscar for it. Maudlin, grotesque, creepy, campy-- need I say more? I have never seen such a bizarre display of weirdness from an actress, and no one will ever equal it. I think the directing here was exquisite. He let Ms. Davis sing and dance the entire song, just as she did in the opening number-- instead of just a snippet as some directors might. This way you get to watch for a long time the delusion of Baby Jane and see Bette Davis milk the scene to perfection. A great cult classic! 10 out of 10.

I have been a fan of Steve Carrell since The Office so I was looking forward to this movie, especially with the glowing reviews.I have to think Hollywood and their reviewers truly live in an alternate reality. Two and a half hours of soporific boredom and yet another "hate the big bankers and capitalism" sermon-movie shoved down out throats.

First of all, Steve Carrell's hair was so distracting, it was so obviously a wig that I could not concentrate on him but on his hair! Then the accent-- he was trying' really haaahd to do a New Yawk accent (a Jewish one to boot) but it did not work.

What is also distracting (and very disagreeable and annoying) is curse words coming out of the mouth of every one in nearly every sentence. Is this necessary to get your point across? Then of course since you could not get sex out of this R-rated movie about bankers, you throw in the obligatory topless stripper. I mean, really? Finally it is the story line and delivery itself. I fell asleep three times watching this! The point was lost in jargon (which a cook and naked lady in the tub and some of the actors are supposed to help us "understand") and the whole tone was steaming "hate the big bad bankers". From what I have been reading there was government pressure to lend to people (i.e., poor people,minority poor people) who could not afford the homes they were buying.Did no one really not see this coming? At any rate the story seems to be really lop-sided and incomplete and more propaganda than reality.

Buurrrgh! I wish Hollywood could make compelling movies without constant curse words, obligatory nudity (and/or sex) and liberal/left ideologies. And then I woke up.

Vapid, bland acting on the part of the lead who plays Michelle Knight, does not look like her, act like her, talk like her, I cannot understand why this untalented woman was cast as this part. She showed the least emotion of the three female actresses and I was wincing more for how bad her acting was than how horribly Michelle Knight was treated. I read Michelle's book and have studied this case and watched her interviews, this lead was horribly miscast. The male lead was not much better, he was way too good-looking to be that demon-man monster, he was too nice and not psychopathic enough at all. It was way too much of a story to cram into 90 minutes, I am not sure any movie or documentary or book will ever do justice to what happened to these girls and the daughter produced in captivity. The actresses who played Gina and Amanda were far better cast and were credible actors. As far as the storyline, it was superficial and glossed over so many important issues, like how the police ignored this man-- a man who had beaten his common-law wife to a pulp years before kidnapping these girls, how the police came to the home when there were reports of screams and noises and did not attempt to enter; how somehow this man was not considered a suspect in the circle of at least Gina's world when he had a violent history and knew her by way of his own daughter. I am stunned the police were this blind, how this man was literally hiding in plain sight for so long. My best wishes for these four victims in that home is that that their futures are filled with every good thing that they would like from now on, that they will find love and appreciation and healing and fulfillment. But if you do not know the story do not rely on this cheeseball Lifetime show. Read Michelle's book, read Amanda and Gina's book, watch their interviews. This was a waste of time and did not do them justice in any way. Someone out there make a better movie than this about what happened for 11 years in Cleveland!