Rating: 
Summary: Death's Waiting Room...
Review: The more something is done to excess, the greater the degree of benefit or consequence that results from said particular something, therefore having a profound effect on the lives of the parties affected. This situation describes the subjects to a tee in "21 Grams", as the effects of drug and substance abuse are examined in great detail under a microscope. Subject to scrutiny, are two subjects, Paul Rivers (Sean Penn) and Jack Jordan (Benecio Del Toro), both of whom have travelled a long and winding road leading to a primrose path of excess in one form or another. This film is a grim reminder of the genuinely harsh realities faced by all in our topsy-turvy society, including the costs of such realities. Among these costs, are those relating to a physical and a social nature, meaning that if humankind does not heed and/or surrender to its own inhibitions, we, as a group, are destined to face our own failures and shortcomings in the end, and with no chance of any redemption. As "21 Grams"' subjects (Paul, Jack, and their loved ones) are about to find out, the truth is bound to be written in blood, and therefore must guard against any harsh judgements cast upon them by their peers. This motion picture is a good study guide for those who want to rid themselves of any negative habits, especially involving those situations which could translate to a matter of life and death. With that said, it is rarely often that anyone ever gets a second chance at life. Yours is waiting at your local theater, in the guise of a viewing of "21 Grams". Amidst the morals contained within, are fine dramatic performances, courtesy of both Penn and Del Toro, including a gripping display of acting from Naomi Watts as well. So, how much is "21 Grams"? The answer is waiting just for you at your local cinema. Get metricized today!
Rating:
Summary: A weighty, but mysteriously draggy, melodrama
Review: If one sets the bar for a movie being "long" at two hours, more and more movies are moving into long territory. When a film is lengthy, it bears an extra responsibility to the audience to keep us interested throughout the running time. Certain films, like Mulholland Dr. and Fight Club, are so mesmerizing that the hours fly by. Other films, no matter how good they may be, feel every minute of their length, and perhaps more. 21 Grams is just such a film. Though it runs just a few minutes more than two hours, it feels about 20 minutes longer. Therefore, despite powerhouse acting and a good story, the film simply cannot reach A-level. Sean Penn, Naomi Watts and Benicio Del Toro are at the forefront of the film throughout and each deserves an Oscar nomination for the riveting performances this film boasts. Penn plays Paul Rivers, a former playboy who now, while dying from a defective heart, is dependent upon his wife for the first time. Watts portrays Cristina Peck, a former drug abuser who falls back into her dangerous habit after a personal catastrophe. Del Toro completely morphs into Jack Jordan, a lifelong criminal who has been taught to embrace Christianity as a way of turning his life around. Each of the stories is tragic, and each intersects. Rivers receives the news that a heart donor may be available, but at a hefty cost to another key character. Jordan throws all his soul into reforming himself and becoming a true family man, but a tragic accident leaves him more alone than ever before. His newly discovered conscience bears down heavily, while his wife urges him to forget the overpowering guilt. If this film is a mood piece, that mood is unquestionably tragic. This being the case, the film ends the only way it can--with a death. The film is laid out in a nonlinear fashion for the first half, and a more chronological way after that. Flashes of the concluding scenes are shown in the beginning, but audiences are initially working so hard to get their bearings that little is actually given away. Rather, our interest is piqued by the drama we are sure lies ahead. Some may argue that the nonlinear technique is unnecessary here--and it probably is not needed to maintain the story's power--but throwing audiences into the middle of the action while moving back and forth in time is a great way to immediately involve everyone in the story. It works that way here. Alejandro González Iñárritu, who helmed the critically popular 2000 picture Amores Perros, directs the film. His visual style is very interesting, and similar to Jane Campion's in her recent misfire In the Cut. The image is grainy and gritty, but not in a way that is distracting or hard on the eyes (like Soderbergh's Full Frontal was). Iñárritu's two films also share the same screenwriter, Guillermo Arriaga. His dialogue is particularly good here, and the characters both interesting and fully realized. Many people may wonder what the title of this film means. There is a closing monologue by one of the characters that tries to relate it to the film itself, not entirely successfully (though Arriaga's words are poetic as usual). "21 grams" refers to the amount of weight that a person is purported to lose at the precise moment of death. Some believe this is the weight of the soul, and others a natural, physiological occurrence; the actuality is unknown. But this good, weighty film speaks for itself, title aside, and is just a step or two shy of being great. Final Grade: B+
Rating: 
Summary: Aboslutely riverting and powerful.
Review: I could not take my eyes off the screen as I was watching this film in the theater. I believe this is one of the best movies of the year so far and I wouldn't be surprise if it doesn't get some kind of award. The acting is superb from the three leading actors. It is a movie that really makes you think about a lot of things. You can tell that is was made on a fairly low budget but I personally prefer movies that are made on a low budget in comparison to the big blockbusters. This movie is not for everyone but if you care about excellence in acting as well as movies with great storylines that make you think and question life and our existence among many other factors than this movie is for you. Sean Penn is terrific, his character is very sick and is dying and his transformation is unreal. Naomi Watts who plays Penn's girlfriend is also top notch and her character goes on an emotional rollercoaster after her husband and her two daughters are tragically killed in a car accident. Last but certainly not least is Benicio Del Toro who plays an ex-con and a reborn Christian who is deeply religious and wants to help those around him do the same also gives a fantastic performance. This film deserves to be remembered by the members of the Academy of Motion Pictures because it truly deserves to be recognized by the Hollywood elite as an amazing film with gripping performances from a fantastic cast of actors.
Rating:
Summary: Powerfully acted and brilliantly filmed...with one big flaw!
Review: First, the good (or great) stuff. This is an actor's movie. Everybody shines in it. Naomi Watts is great as a mother enduring unspeakable tragedy. She's open with her feelings, yet we see that many of them are confused and closed-off even to herself. She veers violently from desparate lust, to lonliness, to anger, to cold-blooded desire for vengeance. We see it all like a roller-coaster ride, and it's totally believable. She should be nominated for an Oscar. Sean Penn is also very good, although I feel he has the easiest time of it. He's a riveting actor, and many unusual things happen to his character...near death while waiting for a heart transplant, then saved but obsessed with knowing how gave him his new heart. It's meaty stuff, but a bit more linear in feeling thatn what Watts goes through. Also, Penn has been around long enough now that we begin to recognize some of his acting tricks. That's OK to a point...DeNiro and Pacino are full of those "tricks" of their own. But Penn was better in MYSTIC RIVER. Benicio Del Toro, as an ex-con struggling to reform and trying to come to terms with God is also quite remarkable. He's got a slack, often empty face, but we see playing across it his struggle to reconcile the things that are happening to him with the redemption he's expecting from God. His anger at the Lord is visceral and believable. His moments of despair convincing. It's a tough role to have sympathy for, but DelToro gets it at the right moments. And special cudos to Melissa Leo,as DelToro's wife. I think her performance may be the most overlooked this year, because of the three stars running around her, but her character is so totally believable. Love for her husband, tempered with despair, anger and aggravation over his over-the-top embrace of religion. Yet when the family is troubled, she is almost Lady Macbeth-like in circling the wagons and taking charge. She has her priorities frighteningly straight. Good stuff! The plot has been often criticized for being a bit "too full of coincidence" and that might be true, but it didn't bother me. We accept that this story is partially about how these coincidences cause these reactions in these specifically drawn people. The production sharply and frequently changes film stock, film speeds, hue, saturation and editing styles to keep things kinetic and hopping. AND to help us sort out the puzzle. The movie is told in a mixed up order. This is fascinating, but for me...it's a big problem. I had no trouble following things and never felt like "hey, what's all this going on?" I enjoyed the puzzle, like one does with films like MEMENTO. Can I piece it together? Am I smart enough? My wife and I leaned over to each other from time to time to agree on what we though had happened, was happening, and where in the context of the whole story things fit. It was a GREAT intellectual enterprise. And yet this very "puzzle" pulled me away from totally being swept up in the heartfelt emotion on screen. The lack of following a linear story made the movie more intellectual and less visceral than it should have been. I was left unmoved. Greatly admiring, absolutely. But not in the least bit moved by the great "revelations." These actors worked too hard to be cheated out of an emotional payoff, but in my opinion, a more straightforward telling (with three parallel and occasionally intersecting storylines) might have gotten me more in the heart than in the head. I know others feel very differently, but that's my opinion. Nonetheless, it's a very good movie and highly recommended for adults.
Rating:
Summary: Messed
Review: Messed up movie!Naomi Watts was Amazing, an outstanding performance.Sean Penn and Benecio Del Toro are Exceptional in this deep,dark, intriguing film, as each of them battle there own crisis from life to there family getting torn apart which brings them together in a bizarre way .21 grams is depressing but you will be mesmerized by the acting and story that they put together so follow along and Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Art House Gold
Review: The technique of this film is fascinating. Basically, the 60 or so scenes of this movie are cut & mixed together semi-sequentially, allowing for dozens of flash-forwards & flashbacks. The effort of building the story out of this collage of scenes mentally disarms the audience, so that when the fragments come together into a solid narrative the climax arrives with uncommon power. The final effect was sublime. I was deeply moved. In terms of philosophy, I think of this plot as a conflict between two paradigms: One is deterministic - that is, you control your destiny. The second - uncertainty - you are buffeted by random events. Most people with careful thought would allow that both models play a part, but if one gets stuck mentally on one track, then the psyche breaks. As Guillermo Del Toro's character had put his faith in God, and then he'd been destroyed as, in his mind, God had made him the instrument of death. Or Naomi Watt's being in the same mental point, with her family gone, wanting to then close the circle by pursuing revenge. I.E. - Someone was at fault. But sometimes there is nobody at fault. Events occur without cause or explanation so the circle can never be closed. But we're hard-wired - we have to try to close the circle. Naomi wants revenge. Guillermo longs for death as punishment, or is broken in a meaningless existence he cannot understand. Their psychic pain is palpable This dichotomy is at the heart of the human condition - we can understand chance, or luck, but we cannot mentally accept our complete helplessness.. If we do, other issues begin to surface. What is the meaning of our lives? Is there any, if G-d is so far away and so uncaring? This worldview, the secular Darwinist one, is deeply disquieting and uncomfortable and very few can stomach it for long periods. The mind produces tricks to avoid these kinds of issues. The Biblical response is the Story of Job - I.E. God works in mysterious ways. I never bought it, but I don't live in a religious worldview anyway. I understand the need. So be it. Maybe I'm just reading my thoughts into this. These are rich themes and I know I'm just scratching the surface. This is a deep movie for deep people. Most movies are light baloney. This is the potroast.
Rating:
Summary: Even Better than Amores Perros!
Review: When describing this, it may not sound like much (a teacher who gets a heart transplant who has an affair with a widow who recently lost her husband and two daughters, and how the widow has the teacher attempt to knock off an ex-convict, born-again christian who killed the husband and two daughters). But this is a movie that is driven by much more than just plot; it is a meditation on the fragil human state, coincidences, existence, redemption. The way that the film is shot out of sequence (like Amores perros) requires one to think and pay close attention, but it does seem to have a purpose as it gives the movie another dimension, making it clear how the events effect the lives of the protagonists, and giving us more insight into their character.
Everything about this is superb: acadamy award-caliber performences from Penn, Watts and Del Toro, beautifully directed, great script and serious drama (I cried twice). If you loved Amores perros, as I did, then this is a must-see, without a doubt. Anyone seeking an intellectual drama will appreciate this one.
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece of art
Review: 21 Grams, staring Sean Penn, Benecio Del Toro, and Naomi Watts is one of the best movies in recent film history. The 3 main characters become connected after a horrible tradgey. The story goes back and forth in time and seems like it was filmed with digital video instead of film. There is not one badly acted performence in this movie. Sean Penn's performance is one of the best in his carrer, Namoi Watts give her best performance and Benecio Del Toro is Amazing. This film is in my opinion is the best film of 2003. See this film.
Rating:
Summary: Marvelous film
Review: In the recent past, I've noticed a trend that Hollywood producers have been mass producing films resulting in little thought, uniqueness, and ingenuity. Instead, many seem to be thoughtless with little or no substance. This is not the case with this film. In fact, it had one of the more unique stories I've ever experienced. This was a movie, that although harsh and intense, was beautiful in every way. I found myself really engrossed in the story and wondering what would happen next. The film was so entertaining, it seemed to fly by in 5 minutes. I was sad that it had to end. So all in all, this is an outstanding film that I hope receives the Oscar recognition it deserves.
Rating:
Summary: absolutely amazing
Review: I thought this was the best film of 2003 (tied with Lost in Translation). Very, very sad film, but you leave the movie just drenched in thought. This movie kept me thinking for days and I had several dreams about it. The acting is phenomenal, the directing is awesome, and the storyline keeps the viewer involved. I didn't know what to expect when I went to see this, but I was satisfied with the end product. Do not see this movie if you hate sad stories or expect resolution.
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