Lee Daniels' The Butler

The Butler, what can I say? I'm going to be honest, I had absolutely no want to see this movie. I have a hard time tolerating Oprah Winfrey (I know I'm the minority) so the fact that she is a lead in this movie made me want to steer clear. On the opposite end of the spectrum I have a great amount of respect for Forest Whitaker and I think he is a brilliant actor.

This is the true life story of Eugene Allen. A lot has happened throughout this man's life and I cannot imagine what it would have been like to recap what it was like to serve under multiple presidents. I understood this film to be the story of a man working as hard as possible to give his family everything.

It is painful to watch at certain points when you watch his eldest son say horrific things to him or learn about his younger son going to war. Watching as Eisenhower talks about how he doesn't necessarily agree with desegregation in schools and knowing that he is that man's butler.

I cannot imagine what it was like to be Mr. Allen and live this life. It was hard for me to watch because at some points I felt like he was doing so much at that time eventually being honored by President Reagan but at the same time having to deal with Presidents who still saw him as just the butler. I know that this is a man's life story and deserves to be respected, however I felt as if the movie was a little long. I wouldn't say that that warrants a "don't watch." I would say if you are interested in the movie go ahead and RENT it, it is worth a view.

The Air I Breathe

Apparently a reoccurring theme in the movies I've been watching is when multiple characters stories all end up intersecting by the end of the film. The story here focuses on four emotions that all humans feel: love, pleasure, sadness, and joy. If the director would not have labeled the emotions throughout the movie, I would have missed the point. My favorite part of this movie was the end. Partly because it was over but also because of what happens with Sarah Michelle Gellar's character. Out of all of the stories the two stories that I liked best were those of Gellar and Bacon.

Something I do often with my friends and family is describe a movie by explaining whether I would pay full price in the theater, see it in a dollar theater, rent it, or skip it. For me, this film fell into the skip it category, but for some I could understand why they would rent it.

I believe my initial interest in this movie was the fact that Emile Hirsch is in it. However, while he did a good job his contribution to the movie was minimal and could almost border on unnecessary.