Need A Break? Sit Back, Relax and Enjoy These Fabulous Titles
1. ‘Ruby Sparks’ (2012) Directed by Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris
Ruby Sparks stars Paul Dano (Little Miss Sunshine) as ‘Calvin’, and Zoe Kazan (Revolutionary Road) as ‘Ruby’. What was so beautifully fresh about this movie was it’s approach to storytelling, and how going off course of the usual ‘guy meets girl and she plays hard to get’ strikes extremely well with the viewer. Paul Dano’s acting has definitely improved, with his raw emotion showing through the character of Calvin. Although the idea has been done before (think ‘Stranger Than Fiction’) where a character from a book comes to life, Calvin does not narrate Ruby’s life vocally, but anything he writes about her on his vintage typewriter instantly affects Ruby.
The theme of love is explored well throughout the plot of the film, and causes you to think about every decision in life we make having an affect on another person, and what we’d do to change that. Another element that ‘Ruby Sparks’ does employ is the dark undertone of what happens when we are given full control of something or someone, and how what we want isn’t always what we need.
Harry: “You don’t know jack about women.”
Calvin: “I know Ruby. I wrote her!”
FOUR out of FIVE stars.
2. The Perks of Being A Wallflower (2012) Directed by Stephen Chbosky
‘Perks of Being A Wallflower’ was the film of my summer. The elegant craft of writer (screenplay and original writer of the book with the same title) and director Stephen Chbosky gave the film an authentic ‘feel’ to it. Rarely are we allowed to see the writer of a book direct their own film version, which is why I fell in love with Perks Of Being A Wallflower. Starring Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief), Emma Watson (Harry Potter) and Ezra Miller (We Need To Talk About Kevin) the trio form a friendship that, by the end of the film, you’re wishing you knew them too.
Centred around the memoirs of ‘Charlie’ (Lerman), we are thrown into a world of a teenager who is a ‘wallflower’ – someone who observes and notices things in the world that others don’t. Why I think this film was so brilliant in terms of captivating it’s target audience, was the reason that theoretically we are all Charlie at some point in our lives. We have experienced high school, love, knowledge, family instability and the social structure of society. What makes ‘Perks of Being A Wallflower’ so radiantly different from most coming-of-age films is the loveable characters, and the instant feeling of nostalgia presented throughout the storyline. If you’re finishing high school this year, or want to relive some (painful as they may be) high school memories, ‘Perks Of Being A Wallflower’ is a must see, and will definitely be around on lists of ‘movies to watch’ for many more years to come.
Patrick: “C minus, ladies and gentlemen! I am below average!”
Sam: “Below average!”
Patrick: “Below average!”
FIVE of FIVE stars.